Kissed by the baddest bidder season 3
by Lexy3643
Summary: Eisuke and Freya move to london and as usual, things aren't going smoothly. Freya has to face a dark side of her family and Eisuke's hotel risks closing down. As with my other stories, this will follow the game with a few tweaks
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

"Excuse me, pardon me. Move!" I shouted as I forced my way through people.

I ran at full speed through the unfamiliar streets of London.

"Stop!" a man shouted.

"Go around and cut her off from the other side." Another shouted.

I was being chased by a group of men, I had no idea what they wanted.

"Give it up, you can't escape." Another of the men shouted.

"Leave me alone!" I shouted.

As I ran, I suddenly ran into someone's arms. They grabbed me hard by the wrists, and pushed me up against a wall.

"Come quietly and you won't get hurt." The man said.

He had my arms pinned against my side, I struggled against his strong grip. I could just make out a tall, grey blur in front of me.

"What do you want from me?" I asked.

I could hear footsteps getting closer to us, it must be the rest of his men. I needed to do something! With one swift movement, I brought my leg up sharply. I felt my foot hit him, I hoped that I hit him in the groin but I couldn't be sure.

He released my arms and I heard him cry out in pain. The moment I was free, I darted to the left and continued to run. I had lost my sun glasses and my cane with all the chaos, but I could make out tall buildings all around me as I continued to run.

This was pointless, I needed to get somewhere that I could hide. I pulled out my phone and started the GPS and asked to be taken to the nearest public building. The nearest public building was a very familiar chapel. My phone directed me down an alley way, across a road till I came to the steps that led into the building. I went through the door, the room was so bright it burnt my eyes. I could barely see anything around me.

Ok just think to when you were here the other day. The alter should be just up ahead, past the rows of pews. Holding my hands out in front of me, I moved forwards. I felt the first row of pews before I started forwards till I came to the alter. I crouched down and hid myself behind it.

I was panting from running so hard, so I covered my hand with my mouth to muffle my breathing. Then suddenly, I heard the chapel doors burst open.

"She must be in here somewhere. Find her!" one of the men ordered.

"Are you sure she came in here?"

"She's blind, there wasn't anywhere else she could have gone." Another said.

I could hear their footsteps echoing all around me, what was I going to do? Why did this have to happen to me? I was having such a fun time up until this point.

A few days earlier, Sakiko and I were in London for a very special occasion.

"I can't believe we're really in London!" she beamed.

"You haven't seen nothing yet. London's amazing." I said.

We were sat in a café enjoying a cup of tea and a slice of cake together.

"You used to live in London, right?" Sakiko asked.

"Yeah, when my Dad was stationed here in the army. I didn't live here in the city but we lived on the military base just on the outskirts of town." I explained.

Sakiko then sighed happily before she giggled. "Chisato's getting married, I'm so happy for her."

"Yeah, me to. I love weddings." I said.

"Though if I'm honest, I thought you'd be the first to get married before any of us."

"Me? No, it's too early for that." I said.

"All you ever do is gush about your boyfriend." She teased.

I brushed off her teasing and sipped my tea. To be honest, ever since I got with Eisuke all I seemed to do was get into trouble. Kidnapped seemed to be a common theme, it was getting boring.

"We made the right decision taking a long vacation, though. I mean, what fun would it be to come all the way to London and not have time for sightseeing?"

"I can't wait to show you around and I can't wait till you meet my friends. I've told them all about you." I said.

She giggled.

"I can't wait. Now, the wedding isn't until tomorrow so where should we go now- Ooh, is that gelato over there?"

Gelato was an ice cream shop. She stood up and dragged me off with her.

We explored London together, I had my mobile phone with GPS in and I lead the way. I first took her on a few tour buses so she could see all of London, we stopped off on a few places like the London eye etc. It was just nice being with her.

I wondered what Eisuke was doing now? He didn't make a big deal about me coming here, I thought that he would but he didn't really seem to care.

"Freya, there's a lovely antique shop over there. Let's go."

Sakiko grabbed my hand and pulled me along. When we stepped inside, I was hit with the smell of burning incense.

"Now this is cute, Freya I think you should get this." Sakiko said.

I felt slip something over my left ring finger.

"What is it?" I asked.

"A ring with a beautiful red stone. The perfect accessory for a wedding, right?"

"If you say so." I said with a shrugged.

She guided me to the till and I paid for the ring.

The next day, me and Sakiko were stood inside the Chapel of where Chisato will be married. The church was full of light so I had to wear my sun glasses whilst inside. It smelt lovely, I could smell roses and lily's.

"Do I look ok?" I asked Sakiko.

We were stood inside the church, waiting to be told where to sit.

"Of course you do, I picked your outfit after all." Sakiko said.

"And my hair?"

"Freya, relax. You look great."

Sakiko had picked me out a knee length, strapless blue dress. She tried to make me wear high heels but I refused and chose to wear flat shoes. I didn't know what she had done to my hair, but she pulled it up into a updo, I just hoped that I looked alright.

"I wonder what her fiancé is like?" she asked.

"I'm sure he's a great guy." I said.

The chapel was filled with Chisato's and the groom's family and friends.

"There's still a bit of time before the ceremony starts, I'm gonna take some pictures of the chapel." She said.

"Ok, have fun." I said.

I heard her walk away and I was left on my own.

"Hi, are you friend of the brides?" someone asked.

It sounded like a man.

"Me? Yes I am."

"Oh, you're engaged. That's a shame." He said with a sigh.

It took me a moment to realise that he meant the ring on my finger.

"This? No it's just a normal ring, I'm not engaged." I explained.

When suddenly, I could hear a commotion going through the crowd.

"Freya. Chistato's at the front door." Sakiko shouted.

"Oh, then the ceremony's about to start." I said.

"Guess I'll get back to my seat, then. Hope to see you later." The man said and I heard him walk away.

"Freya, who was that?" Sakiko asked.

"I guess a friend of Chisato's husband?" I said.

We took our seats and then I heard the door open, music started to play as Chisato and her husband entered the church.

"Oh my gosh. She looks beautiful Freya." Sakiko whispered.

At times like this, I wished I could see. I bet she looked like a princess.

After the wedding had finished, me and Sakiko exited the chapel.

"She looked so beautiful." Sakiko said.

"I bet she did. I'm so happy for her." I said.

"I got so emotional I started to cry. I want my happy ending too." She said.

"Hey." Someone said.

I recognised that voice, it was the man from before.

"Beautiful ceremony, wasn't it?" he asked.

"Yes, it was lovely." I said.

"So, you two friends of the brides?" he asked.

"Yes, we work with Chisato. I'm Sakiko Koizumi and this is my friend, Freya Wells."

"I'm-"

Before the man could finish his sentence, another man approached us.

"Excuse me, young master. But I'm afraid it's time."

This man spoke in such a formal tone, he sounded like a butler or something.

"Of course, I have to go. But I'm sure we'll meet again sometime, I swear on that ring." The first man said.

He then reached out and took my hand in his, lifted it up and I felt him kiss the ring on my finger.

What?!

He ignored my shock and walked away.

"Uh… did he just kiss my ring?" I asked.

"Holy crap, that guy was hot. You're so lucky, Freya." Sakiko laughed. "He's the same guy who talked to you earlier, a whirlwind vacation romance, how exciting!"

"Knock it off, Sakiko. Stop being so dramatic." I said.

"Excuse me, we'll be having the reception over there. Please go inside and help yourself to wedding favours." a staff member shouted out to everyone.

The men's footsteps were coming closer. These couldn't be ordinary guys, I bet they had guns, so I had to be careful.

"You sure she's here?"

"Hmm… maybe she escaped into a different building. Keep searching."

Just as I breathed a sigh of relief, my arm bumped into the edge of the alter with a soft thump.

"What was that noise?"

"There she is. Behind the alter!"

I screamed as hands grabbed me and I was dragged out from behind the alter.

"Get off me!" I shouted and tried to struggle free.

I then felt someone cold touch my temple.

"Unless you have a death wish, I suggest you come quietly."

"What do you want from me? I've not done anything." I said.

"Shut up." One hissed.

Just then, the church doors burst open and I heard some familiar voices.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, pretty lady." Baba beamed.

"I bet you were lonely without me." Ota said.

"Tch. You're nothing but trouble, kid." Kishi said.

"You've got a real knack for getting yourself into these situations." Soryu said.

"Guys!"

"There's no shortage of drama with you, Freya." Eisuke said.

"What are you all doing here? I thought you were still in Dubai?" I said.

"Shut up!" the man holding me said and pulled me backwards.

"We can talk later." Soryu said.

As I stood there, the man holding me let me go which was followed by the sounds of fighting. I could hear the others all groaning in pain and falling to the floor.

"Normally I'm a lover, not a fighter but you know I'd do anything for you, Freya." Baba said.

"Don't you know guns are dangerous?" Kishi asked.

I then heard things scraping across the floor, I assumed Kishi was kicking the men's guns away.

"Freya, let's go." Eisuke said.

He grabbed my hand and pulled me outside of the Chapel.

"Wait here." He said and left me.

What a day this turned out to be. As I waited, I heard the sounds of gun fire come from the chapel. It took all my strength not to run back into the church, they didn't need me to get in their way.

Moments later, the strange men all ran out of the church with the others close behind but it was too late. The men had escaped.

"Are you alright, Freya?" Eisuke asked.

I nodded.

"Good."

Minutes later, a limo arrived not long after and took us to the new Tres of Spades in London and as usual, we all went up to the penthouse.

I had my arm slipped into Eisuke and he guided me to a sofa and sat down next to me.

"Who were those guys? They ran out of the church pretty fast." Soryu said.

They were all sat down on the sofas with Eisuke in the middle.

"I'm sure she screwed up again. Just like in Dubai." Kishi said.

"Hey, I didn't do anything. Those guys just suddenly started chasing me." I said.

"What did they want?" Eisuke asked.

"I don't know. But anyway, thank you for saving me. What are you all doing in London? You guys weren't supposed to be here for another week." I said.

"We thought we'd come and surprise you." Baba beamed.

"Yeah, we wouldn't want you to get lonely without us." Ota said.

I was hoping to have some time away from the guys for a while, have a bit of girlie holiday. I couldn't help but get the feeling of deja ve. This is exactly what happened in Dubai, I thought I was only coming over for a holiday but we ended up staying there. I knew the same thing was going to happen here but, I couldn't complain. I was back in my home town, I could see all of my old friends.

"As usual, your whims are impressive, Boss. Coming all the way to England to build another Tres Spades, just because you're getting sick of Dubai." Baba said.

"It wasn't a whim. It was a carefully calculated plan to expand my business. It is true that I was growing tired of Dubai, though." Eisuke said.

Expanding his business? Yeah right! I bet the main reason was because he was bored of Dubai.

"We'll have the auctions here to, right?" Ota asked.

"Just to kill time." Eisuke said.

"You guys aint sick of that yet?" Kishi asked.

"Think of how much fine art we can get hold of in Europe. The profits will be worth it, I'm sure." Soryu said.

"I bet we'll get a lot of patrons with very discerning eye here. I think the auctions will definitely be worth it." Baba said.

"I can't wait to start appraising items!" Ota beamed.

"Don't get too carried away here." Kishi said.

"Says Kishi, who looks like he's plotting something already." Ota said.

"So, where are you guys all going to live?" I asked.

"In the hotel of course!" Baba said. "We're having a fresh start."

"Guess you could say we're going back to our roots. I like living in the hotel best anyway." Kishi said.

"Also, I'm still concerned about those men. We don't know who they are or what they're after. They might come after you again, but if you stay here with us, we can protect you." Soryu said.

"Hm. I'm not scared of those men. I say bring it on." I said and clenched my fist, the guys all laughed at me.

It annoyed me about how they all seemed to treat me like a delicate flower, I can take care of myself.

"That's our Freya!" Baba said and laughed.

"Now that things have settled down, you can bring your things here. You'll be staying with me. I won't allow you to stay anywhere except my hotel." Eisuke said.

Up until now, me and Sakiko had been staying in a small premier Inn in the centre of town.

A limo took me to the hotel where Sakiko was waiting.

"Geeze, where have you been? You disappeared all of a sudden and I couldn't get a hold of you." She said.

"I'm sorry. Things got… a little crazy. But there's a Tres Spades in London now." I said.

"Say what?!"

"And apparently, I start work today."

"Today? Are you working for the VIPs again?"

"Yeah."

"Oh my god. I'm so jealous. Mr Ichinomiya has a flair for the dramatic, as usual." She laughed. "I wish I could transfer to London too. I just know that I'd meet the man of my dreams here."

"Maybe. But anyway, I have to go." I said and pulled her into a tight hug.

"Don't worry, it's not this is goodbye forever. I'll Skype you when I get back to Japan, alright?"

"Yeah. Have a safe trip home." I said.

I gathered up my things before I left the hotel and returned to the limo.

The Tres Spades here was much bigger than Dubai and Japan, I could tell that I was easily going to get lost. The Limo driver had to escort me to the penthouse elevator and to the penthouse, when we reached the hallway he directed me to the door.

"Thanks, I can manage from here." I said to the driver.

"Very well miss." He said and walked off.

Eisuke's suite should be just ahead, I walked forwards and as I reached for the door handle the door opened.

"You're late. How long do you plan on keeping me waiting?"

"Sorry your highness." I said sarcastically, bowed before I pushed passed him to get into the lounge.

The moment I walked in, he scooped me up into his arms and carried me through the room.

"Eisuke, I can walk by myself and you just made me drop my bags." I said.

He didn't say anything, he just kept walking. He carried me up a flight of stairs, I heard him kick a door open and we came to a bright room. I had to shield my eyes from the glare. The room smelt so fresh and clean, this must be Eisuke's private suite. He still didn't stop, he continued to carry me before he suddenly dropped me and I landed on a soft bed.

I let out a small cry as he dropped me, before I could even sit up he was on top of me and pressed his lips against mine in a deep, passionate kiss.

This was the first time we had been alone since Dubai. It was a nice way to start our life in London. But he then pulled away and nothing else happened.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

He then grabbed my left hand roughly.

"Take that off now." He ordered.

He was referring to the ring on my left ring finger.

"Ow. Get off me." I said and tried to push him off, but he didn't move.

"Who is it? Tell me who stole you away from me!" He glared at me.

I should have taken it off before I came back here, no wonder he had gotten the wrong idea.

"No, it's just a normal ring." I said.

"I won't allow anyone else to put a ring on my woman." He said in a cold, emotionless tone.

His jealousy was flattering but god it was exhausting.

"No more kissing until you take that thing off."

I chuckled to myself, I wonder who would give in first if we both went on strike from sex? It would be Eisuke. I would place money on it but, I didn't want our life in London to start with us fighting.

I pulled and tugged on the ring till finally came off.

"Happy?" I said and placed the ring on my other hand.

I then felt him take hold of my hand, he ran his long, cold fingers up and down my left ring finger.

"This finger is reserved for me, do you understand? Don't let it happen again."

"Wha-"

Before I could response, his lips were on mine. He pushed me down onto the bed and continued to roughly kiss me.

"You know what will happen if I see you wearing a ring there again?"

"Hm. I don't know, maybe you should show me?" I said with a smile.

"You're getting greedy." He said before he kissed me again, his strong hands touched me exactly how I like it. I wrapped my arms around him and flipped him over on the bed, so I was on top. I reached out and felt his soft face with my finger tips, I ran my fingers over his lips before I kissed him.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The morning sunlight stirred me from sleep, the moment I opened my eyes I was blinded by the bright light. I reached over to my bedside table and grabbed my sun glasses and slipped them on. I then reached over the bed and felt a sleeping Eisuke led beside me. His face was only inches from mine, I could feel his warm breath on my face as he slept.

I couldn't believe that we were in London, life was never boring when I was with Eisuke.

I brushed Eisuke's hair from his forehead, I heard him stir but he didn't wake up. He always had such silky, smooth hair. I never understood how he always got it so nice. London had a lot of memories for both of us, we both spent our childhoods here. I couldn't wait to learn more about Eisuke and Soryu, since Soryu was here too as a child. I slipped out of bed and walked over to a large window, I reached out and touched the glass. I bet it was a lovely view, the sun light made it impossible for me to see anything but I bet the view was beautiful. I couldn't wait to get back out there in London, see all of my friends. I was so excited.

As I turned to go back into bed, I felt a pair of strong arms wrap around me from behind.

"How many times do I have to tell you not to get out of bed without my permission?" Eisuke said.

"Oh, you're awake. Good morning." I said and turned around and planted a kiss on his lips.

He didn't say anything, he just pulled me back into bed and held me in his arms.

I sighed and snuggled into him, I loved being in his strong arms. I always felt so safe and secured and I loved his hugs. No matter where we go, he never changes.

He released me for a moment before he pinned me against the bed.

"Care to tell me why you have that sly grin on your face?"

I turned my face away innocently "Not sly. I was just thinking how you never change, no matter where we go." I said.

I then realised that came out wrong.

"Um, I mean that in a good way. I like that you don't change." I said.

"I'm sure. I'll wipe that grin right off your face." He said.

He pulled me towards him and pressed his lips against mine before I could answer. His tongue stroked hungrily against mine so passionately I could barely breath. I wrapped my arms around him to pull him even closer, I ran my hands up and down his back as his kiss became more intense.

*knock knock*

"Morning Boss!" Baba beamed, I heard the door open and footsteps entering the room.

"Hey, Eisuke, about the lobby downstairs…" Ota said.

Before I could even say anything, the two of them just barged into the room.

"Hm? Oh, are we interrupting something?" Ota said sounding sly.

"Yes, so go away." I said.

"I had to teach her a lesson, since she likes to get out of bed without my permission." Eisuke said.

That's it, the moment was gone. I tried to sit up but Eisuke held me firmly against his chest and nuzzled his face against my neck.

"Eisuke, Ota and Baba are right there!"

"I don't care, I'm not done so sit still." He said.

I tried to push him away, but he held on tight.

"Maybe we should lend you a hand. You know what they say, the more the merrier." Ota said.

"Oh, I actually prefer to watch." Baba said with a smile. "And I REALLY wish we had time for that, but unfortunately the manager's asked me to come up and get Freya."

"Mr Kenzaki wants to see me?" I asked.

I wondered what he wanted? I wriggled free from Eisuke and got out of bed.

"If you give me a minute, I'll just get changed." I said.

"Are you sure? Boss looks upset." Baba said.

"And there's no way we can calm him down." Ota said.

"It's work, if Mr Kenzaki wants me, I have to go." I said.

"So you're going to defy me and obey Kenzaki instead?" Eisuke asked.

I sighed "Don't start Eisuke. If I'm going to live here, I need to work and that's that."

I still wasn't sure where everything was in the room. I grabbed my cane and got Eisuke to take me to the bathroom. I brushed my teeth and washed my face. Eisuke brushed my hair and pulled it back into a pony tail before I got dressed.

"I'm ready Baba." I said.

"I'll come with. I still haven't seen the whole hotel yet." Ota said.

"Fine, see you later Eisuke." I said and slipped my arm through Baba's arm.

"You know what it means to make me wait, don't you?" Eisuke said.

I bet he was smiling. It meant that he was going to 'punish' me later. A twinge of anticipation rushed through my body as I left the room with Baba and Ota.

The hotel was huge, it was so confusing. Baba and Ota took me down to the lobby.

"It's going to take forever to learn my way around here." I said.

"Ota designed this one." Baba said.

"Eisuke gave me total creative control, he's the best client I've ever worked for. I'd hate to have him for an enemy though." Ota said and laughed.

"I bet it all looks beautiful." I said.

"Of course it does." Ota said.

All three of us chatted as we walked through the lobby. I counted 22 steps till we reached the staff hallway to the conference room. The other staff members were already in the conference room. I could hear many people talking, there was a mixture of Japan and Dubai speaking people.

"Sorry I'm late Mr Kenzaki." I said.

My cane hit a chair, I reached out and took hold of an empty chair and sat down.

"Welcome to London, Freya. We were just finishing up the usual morning meeting. Basically, your job will be the same as it was in Japan and Dubai. You'll continue to work in the Spa and for the VIPs." He said.

The other staff members in the room then all started to leave the room. I heard the chairs move along the floor and the door opening several times.

"Great, thank you." I said.

"Here's your new uniform and your pager." He said and handed them to me.

He showed me to the staff room and I got changed into my uniform before I was escorted to the hotel spa. Mr Kenzaki was so kind, he had another staff member escort me round the hotel so I didn't get lost. The spa was pretty much the same as the one in Dubai. I first walked through a set of double doors, I then came to reception and my treatment room was the first on the right. One the door was braille writing which said my name.

I wondered if Eisuke was the one who had this done?

I went into my treatment room and took my time in exploring my room. As I walked through the door, to my left was my desk with a laptop and above the desk were shelves. The shelves were stacked with towels, oils and other treatment. When I picked up the bottles, each bottle had braille writing on, so I knew what was in the bottle. Three steps in front of the door, was my treatment bed. It sat almost in the centre of the room. I moved around the bed and ran my free hand along the wall, there was a shelf and I felt what seemed like an iPod docking station and an incense burner.

This room was perfect! I couldn't wait for my first client. I placed my cane by the door and went over to my laptop and checked on my first appointment. There was going to be here in about five minutes.

1 hour later, I had given three clients massages. I was stood outside in reception washing my hands when my pager went off.

I asked the receptionist to take me to the penthouse elevator. The elevator pinged as we reached the top, I walked out into the hallway and made my way into the penthouse lounge.

All the guys seemed to be deep in conversation.

"Are you sure? How is it any different than before?" Ota asked.

"He's got a point, I kind of want a fresh take on it." Baba said.

"We need to establish the auctions presence first." Soryu said.

So they were talking about the auctions.

"Hey Freya, find the penthouse ok?" Baba asked.

I shrugged "It'll take a while but I'll be fine. What did you guys need?" I asked.

"Coffee." Eisuke said.

He called me all the way up here to make coffee? Some things never change.

"What's the magic word?" I asked.

"Please." He said.

"Fine, which way to the kitchen?" I asked.

"This way." Baba said and took my hand.

Once I found the kitchen, it didn't take me long to make everyone a pot of coffee. I poured them each a cup before I returned to work.

That evening, I was sat on the sofa with Eisuke brushing my hair. Now that I didn't have Sakiko, Eisuke took it upon himself to do my hair for me.

He stopped brushing my hair and put something in my hand. It felt kind of like a phone.

"What's this?" I asked.

"Hotel GPS, so it's easier to find your way around the hotel." He said.

I smiled and turned to face him. "You had this made for me?"

"Only because Mr Kenzaki told me you were struggling to find your way around the hotel. If you weren't so incompetent, I wouldn't need to do it." He mumbled.

I bet his was blushing.

"Yeah right, if you say so." I said and gave him a mocking smile.

I knew he done it because he was worried about me, I couldn't help but laugh.

I then felt him push me down onto the sofa, he led on top of me pinning me in place. He ran his soft lips up and down my neck. I wrapped my arms around him and started to kiss his neck in return before I started to remove his clothes.

The next day, Eisuke brought me to a historic hotel built on the banks of the Thames River.

I had my phone in my hand and checked our location.

"Oh, the church where Chisato got married is just next door." I said.

"And the one we rescued you from." Eisuke said.

"Don't remind me. Anyway, why have you dragged me here?" I asked.

"To observe the enemy." He said.

"The enemy?" I asked.

"You're Eisuke aren't you? I recognize you straight away." Someone said.

We turned around at the sound of the cheerful voice, it took me a moment but I recognised it as the same guy I met at the wedding.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr Ackerson." Eisuke said.

"Please, call me Frank, Eisuke. I've heard so much about the Tres of Spades. Congratulations on your new venture here in London."

"Thank you." Eisuke.

So his name was Frank? I wondered how he knew Chisato.

"It's you…" Frank said.

"Me? Yeah hi. I saw you the other day at Chisato's wedding. It's nice to see you again." I said.

"Yes you did, it must be fate us meeting again. I'm Frank Ackerson, the owner of this hotel."

"I'm Freya Wells, I work at the Tres Spades Hotel." I said.

"Really? What do you do at the hotel?" he asked.

"I work in the Spa."

"I wish all my staff looked as beautiful as you." He said.

"Now now Master Frank, you shouldn't tease her so." Another man said.

I recognised him as well, I also met him at the party. Was he Frank's butler or something?

"As you can see my Butler here is a bit of a stodgy one."

"I'm envious that you have such a dedicated Butler." Eisuke replied.

Eisuke's charm didn't fault for a moment, I bet he had just the right business smile on his face.

It was amazing that Frank owned the hotel, it had such a relaxed atmosphere I could tell that guests would feel at ease here. The Tres Spades was still quite new, but hopefully it would become as successful as this hotel.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

After we got back from Frank's hotel, Eisuke practically threw himself onto the sofa.

"Is Frank's hotel really the number one hotel in London? He's so young." I said and sat down next to him.

"Coffee please." He demanded.

"Ok." I said and went to the kitchen.

As I brew the coffee, I heard Eisuke sigh heavily.

"It's more exhausting than my normal work."

"What is?" I asked.

I gave him his coffee and sat down opposite him.

"Observing the enemy."

Now that he mentioned it, he did seem tired.

"It must be hard to keep up appearances the whole time." I said.

"All the muscles in my face hurt. Meeting him was worth it, though."

He drained his coffee cup and stood up.

"I'm going out." He said.

"Ok. I'll see you later." I said.

I stood up to say goodbye, he turned around and planted a kiss on my lips before he left. Since I had time, I really needed to un pack my things. My suitcase was still full and Eisuke had my stuff transferred from Dubai in boxes. I went to the bedroom and pulled my suitcase out from the cupboard and started to unpack. I put my clothes inside the wardrobe and emptied my suitcase. I then went through the boxes, inside one was my violin.

I picked it up and ran my hand up and down feeling every detail. It had been a while since I played, maybe when Eisuke got back I could play him a song to cheer him up. I put my violin in it's case and put it away. The rest of my stuff was just books and other bits and bobs. I had finished unpacking in just under an hour.

Well, what to do now? I didn't want to stay inside all day. That's when I realised, I hadn't seen any of my old friends since I got here. I got out my mobile and called around, I managed to get hold of my friends Becca, Sophie and Lucy. I was friends with them in school.

30 minutes later, I got out of a taxi and they were waiting outside our favourite café.

"Freya!" Becca beamed.

She ran towards me and gave me a big hug.

"Hey. How are you?" I said and hugged her back.

She hadn't changed. She was still shorter than me, she smelt of the same perfume she always wore. I placed my hand on the back of her head and felt her soft hair.

"You've cut your hair." I said.

She used to have long blonde hair but now it was just above her shoulders.

"Yep and it's dyed red." She said.

"Nice." I said.

"Hey, move over Becca, some of us want to hug Freya to." Sophie said.

Becca moved away and I hugged Sophie next. Sophie stood taller than me, I did the same and touched her head. She still had her long hair but it was tied up into a pony tail.

Lucy was next, she pulled me in for a tight embrace.

"We've missed you." She said.

She was the same height as me and I could feel her long, curly hair down her back as we hugged.

"It's so good to see everyone. Shall we go inside?" I said.

"Let's, we have so much catching up to do." Becca said.

She took hold of my hand and we walked inside. We took our favourite table at the back of the room in the far right hand corner and each ordered a drink.

"So, what's new with everyone?" I asked.

"Well, I'm currently training to be a fashion designer." Becca bragged and laughed. "It's amazing, I get to work with models all day designing their clothes and helping in shoots. It's really amazing."

"You're only a trainee but I do admit, you do get to meet all the hot guys." Sophie said.

"That's amazing Becca. And what about you Sophie?" I asked.

"Same old really. I've qualified as a sports injuries therapist and I'm trying to run my own business but it's hard." She said.

"Well that's good. You still playing rugby?" I asked.

"Of course." She said.

"I don't know how you do it, getting dirty all the time." Becca said.

"What about you Lucy?"

"I'm still working with my mum as a hair dresser and can I just ask, who did your hair this morning?" she asked.

"My hair? What's wrong with it?" I asked.

I reached up and touched the long plate that Eisuke had done for me.

"It's messy, did you do it?" she asked.

"No, my boyfriend did." I said.

"You have a boyfriend? Do tell." Becca said.

"Oh well, there's not much to tell really…"

"Don't be like that, we want all the details. Spill!" Becca ordered.

"Yeah come on." Sophie said.

"I bet he's cute." Lucy said.

"Well, I wouldn't know if he was cute but people have told me that he is. Um well… we met in Japan and he runs the hotel that I work at." I said.

"Really? Ooh an office romance! So, I assume you met at work?" Becca asked.

"Yeah… you could kind of say that."

"So, what are you doing back in London? Last time we spoke you were in Dubai." Sophie said.

"Yeah, you really get around." Lucy said.

"Oh well, he's just opening new hotels that's all and I wanted to come back to London, I missed it. I loved Japan and everything but I feel at home here. And Eisuke grew up in London as well, so it's like we're getting back to our roots." I said.

"His name is Eisuke, huh?" Lucy asked.

"I just googled him. Oh my god Freya, he's freakin' rich! May I ask, what are you doing still working when you've got such a rich boyfriend?" Becca asked.

"Becca, it's not all about money. Freya might enjoy her job." Sophie said.

"But yeah but… why work when your boyfriends rich?" Becca asked again.

I sighed and shook my head "I'm not interested in his money and I don't need his money. I can look after myself and I don't need anyone to look after me."

Sophie laughed and then she punched me on the arm.

"Ow."

"You never change Freya, I'm glad your back." She said.

I rubbed my tender arm but smiled.

"Me to. First things first, we need a night out. Just like what we use to do, I want to hit all our old clubs and bars." I said.

"That's going to be hard, some of them aren't around anymore." Lucy said.

"Doesn't matter, let's do it. I love a good night out and I can get us all some really nice dresses." Becca said.

"Great, well I'm free Saturday." I said.

"Same." Sophie said.

"Me to." Lucy said.

"Then it's agreed. Ok here's the plan, everyone come to my house. We'll all get ready together, Lucy you can do our hair and I'll do everyone's makeup and I'll get us all some nice dresses. We'll have some pre-drinks as well." Becca said.

"Sounds good." I said.

A few hours later, after the café we went and did some shopping and I was heading back to the hotel. I was stood in line waiting for a taxi. As I stood there, I felt something cold being pushed into my back and someone then grabbed my arm.

"Don't move or make a sound. Come quietly and this won't get messy." A deep voice whispered in my ear.

I nodded.

"This way." They said and pulled me backwards.

We started to walk down the street, he was stood next to me holding my arm and I could feel the cold object pressing against my side. I guessed that it was a gun.

"Who are you? Where are we going?" I asked.

"Shut up." They hissed.

This guy must be the same as the other ones that chased me the other day. We walked for a little longer before he then pushed me into a car, I fell forwards onto the seat. He pushed me along and I moved till I bumped into another person.

"Drive." The man with the gun ordered.

He continued to press the gun against my side.

"Please tell me what's going on." I said.

"Just be quiet. Take her bag and throw it out of the window and take her cane as well." He said.

"Hey!"

The person on the other side of me grabbed my handbag and my cane and they disappeared.

"Give them back." I demanded and tried to snatch them back.

"Sorry, they've already gone out of the window." The second person said, now that I heard them speak I knew that it was a guy.

"Why did you do that?" I asked.

"So no one can track us." The first man said.

What was going on? These guys were kidnapping me but why? I just needed to stay calm, if I complied and did what they asked this shouldn't end badly.

The car came to a stop and I was pulled out by my arm.

"Walk." The man with the gun ordered and pushed me forwards.

"You took away my cane, how am I meant to walk? I'm blind you know." I said.

He didn't reply, he just pushed me forwards. I walked hesitantly with my hands out in front of me. We walked up a few steps, then we went through a door. I was pulled to the left and we walked down a long corridor before we walked into another room. I was instantly greeted by the smell of cigar smoke and alcohol.

"Boss, we've brought her." the man with the gun said.

"Excellent. Welcome Freya, it's nice to finally meet you." Another man said.

The room was so dark, even when I took my sun glasses off I couldn't make out anything.

"Do I know you?" I asked.

"No, but I know you. Don't just stand their boys, help her to a seat." He ordered.

Someone took my hand and pulled me forwards and then pushed me onto a chair. I reached forwards and felt a wooden desk in front of me.

"Who are you? Why have you kidnapped me?" I asked.

"You look so much like your father and you appear to have inherited his fiery nature as well." The man said.

"Answer my questions, who are you and why have you kidnapped me?" I said again.

He just laughed "I apologise for being rude Freya, my name is Sam and I've worked with your father for years but unfortunately, he doesn't want to continue our partnership. So, I was hoping you could persuade him for me to change his mind."

"You kidnapped me just for that? Why not just approach me and ask. I'll be happy to talk to him, I'm sure we can work this out." I said.

"Why, aren't you a good girl? I was expecting more of a fight."

"I don't mind talking to him. What's the reason he wanted to stop being your partner?" I asked.

My dad must have a good reason but if I spoke to him, maybe I could convince him? But I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off with Sam, but I needed to cooperate.

"Simple really, he no longer wishes to sell me weapons and I have already promised my buyers this month's delivery."

"Guns? No, my father wouldn't sell you weapons." I said.

Sam laughed again "I hate to break it to you sweetheart, but me and your father have been working together for nearly 10 years. He's been selling me military weapons, but for some reason he's had a change in conscience and you are going to change it back."

"My father wouldn't sell military weapons, I don't believe you. He's a high ranking General, he wouldn't do that." I said firmly.

"I don't need you to believe me, I just need you to change his mind. Get the good General on the phone and put it on loud speaker." Sam ordered.

I heard a phone dial and then a ringing tone.

"Hello?" my Dad answered.

"Hello George, it's Sam."

"Sam? I've already told you, I am not selling you any more weapons."

At that moment, my heart sunk. I couldn't believe it, how could my Dad do this?

"Before you hang up, I just thought you'd like to know that I have your daughter Freya here with me. Say hello Freya." Sam said.

I kept my mouth firmly shut.

"Freya? I doubt that. Threatening my family won't work Sam." Dad.

"Oh really? Do it." Sam ordered.

One of his men then grabbed my hand and started to twist it backwards

"Ow! Ow! No stop, stop it!" I shouted.

I fell to the floor on my knees and tried to twist with my body.

"Freya? Let her go Sam." Dad ordered.

"If you want to see your daughter again, I want that month shipment and I want your continued cooperation. You have 6 hours." Sam said and then hung up.

The man released my hand, I held it close to my body and cradled it with my other hand.

"That was not necessary Freya, I suggest if you want to live, that you comply. I'd prefer not to use violence if I can." Sam said.

"Hm, bastard. I bet you secretly enjoyed doing that." I hissed as tears rolled down my cheeks.

I heard a chair move and then I was pulled to my feet and Sam was only stood inches from me.

"Now, I have no intention of hurting you Freya. You have two choices, you can either spend the next 6 hours in luxury as we wait for your father or I can have you locked away in a room. So, are you going to behave?" he asked.

I nodded.

"Good, now this way. I have dinner ready for us." He said.

He had hold of my arm and dragged me out of the room. We came to another room and he sat me down at a table. I could smell all kinds of different foods, from steamed veg to cooked meat.

"Boys, fill Freya's plate with food and get her a drink. I think she's going to need it." Sam said.

His men moved around the time and in no time at all, a plate full of food was placed in front of me and a glass was pushed in my hands.

I smelt the alcohol before I took a sip.

"Nice? One of my finest wines." Sam said.

"Hm, I've tasted better. How long has my father been selling you weapons?" I asked.

I picked up a knife and fork and started to pick at the food.

"Ten years."

So since I was 16? We moved to Japan when I was 21 and that's when I got the job at the Tres Spades.

"What are you going to do with the weapons?" I asked.

"Isn't it obvious? Sell them to my buyers, who will ever buy them at the highest price."

"What did you do to make my father do this? Threaten him?" I asked.

Sam laughed.

"You think I threatened him? We split the profits, every time. 50/50."

I threw my knife and fork to the table, this couldn't be true. My dad wouldn't do this, he wouldn't.

I bet Sam was enjoying this, I could imagine him smiling at me.

After dinner, I sat with Sam in his living room where he chained smoked cigars and made me listen to some horrible music. Then one of his men came into the room.

"Boss, it's time. I have the car ready."

"Perfect, let's go Freya." Sam said.

He pulled me up from the chair and pulled me out of the house and pushed me into the car.

"Now, as long as you behave you won't be harmed." Sam said.

I was sat in between him and one of his men, he had a firm grip on my arm.

"I still don't believe you, my father wouldn't sell you weapons." I said.

"Are you stupidly optimistic or just stupid? You'll see once we get to the rendezvous point." Sam said.

I just hoped that this was all a mistake, I knew it wasn't but I hoped that it was. When the car came to a stop, Sam pulled me out of the car. It was freezing, the night air hit me and made me shiver.

I could smell water and oil.

"Where are we?" I asked.

"The dock yard." Sam said.

A heard another car pull up, a door opened and then slammed shut.

"George, good to see you again." Sam said.

"I'm here, now lets Freya go. I have your weapons." Dad said.

I then heard what sounded like boxes being dropped on the floor.

"I'm sorry it had to come to this, George. I hope you understand what it means if you try this again." Sam said,

He still was holding onto my arm, probably to prove a point to my Dad.

"I understand, now let Freya go." Dad said.

"Fine, off you go sweetheart." Sam released my arm.

I moved quickly towards my Dad's voice till I felt him wrapped his arms around me.

"I'm so sorry sweetheart, are you ok? They didn't hurt you did they?" He said and held me tight.

I couldn't hug him back. I just stood there, unsure of what to do.

"I'm fine." I said.

"Freya, I need you to listen carefully. When I say, I want you to run. Understand?" he whispered.

He was planning something?

I nodded.

He let me go and took hold of my hand and we started to walk away.

"Get ready." He said.

"What are you doing?" I whispered.

I heard a small bleep before I was thrown forwards by a large explosion. I skidded along the floor, I could feel heat on my back, I could smell burning and smoke.

"Get up, run." Dad ordered.

He pulled me to my feet and dragged me with him as we ran.

"Get in the car." He ordered.

He opened the rear passenger door and pushed me in before he climbed into the driver seat and we sped away.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I placed explosives in the guns."

"You blew up the guns? What is wrong with you?" I shouted.

The car skidded as we turned but then I heard a gunshot echoed nearby, it was followed by the sound of my car window shattering. Small flakes of glass hit me in the face, piercing my skin.

"Freya, get down." Dad shouted.

I hit the seat and covered my head with my arms as more gun shots followed. I cried out as the windows were being shot, the car moved in every direction as Dad tried to avoid the bullets.

"Who's shooting at us?" I asked.

"Sam."

"He's not dead?!"

"Obviously not!" Dad shouted.

Suddenly, there was a loud bang and the car started to skid out of control.

"He shot out one of the tyres. Hold on." Dad shouted.

I was thrown forwards as the car crashed head first into something, I rolled into the foot wells of the car onto shards of broken glass.

"Ow. Dad are you ok? Dad?" I said and sat up.

I could smell smoke coming from the car.

"Dad." I said louder.

I reached over the driver's seat and shook him, but he didn't respond.

Oh god!

Both of my arms and hands have been cut from the glass, pain seared from my bloody hands as I opened the door. I stepped out and opened the driver's door.

"Dad. Dad! Wake up, please!" I begged and shook him.

I could hear him breathing, so that was a good thing, but we needed to get out of here. As I started to reach in to pull him out, a hand grabbed me from behind and pinned me up against the car. I felt the cold barrel of a gun against my temple and a hand round my throat.

"I am going to make your father pay for doing this to me." Sam hissed.

My entire body shook, I held up my hands in surrender.

"Please, please don't do this. Please!" I begged.

"I tried doing it the nice way, but it looks like I'm going to get to do this the hard way. But question is, should I kill you now or wait till your father wakes up, so he can watch?"

He was toying with me, he moved the gun from my temple to under my chin and then he started to trace my face with it. This was it, I was never going to see Eisuke again or any of my friends. I was never even going to get married or have any children.

I cried out as I heard a gunshot ring next to my ear, I froze waiting to feel pain from the shot, but it never came. Instead the hand around my throat disappeared and I heard Sam fall to the floor with a thud. My heart was racing, I tried to catch my breath to calm myself down. My whole body trembled till I couldn't stand anymore and I fell to my knees sobbing.

"Freya, are you ok?" Dad said.

"What happened?" I said as I sobbed.

"I shot him, he's dead. Don't worry, he won't hurt you again." Dad said.

He gently put his arms around me and pulled my face into his chest as I burst into tears.

"It's ok, you're safe now." He said tenderly and stroked my hair.

Once my heart had finally stopped pounding, I pulled away from him.

"We should go." I said.

"You're right, you need medical attention. Can you stand?" he asked.

I nodded and slowly stood up.

"How are we going to get out of here?" I asked.

"Let me worry about that, let's go." He said.

As my hands and arms were covered in many tiny cuts, I couldn't hold onto him. So he kept his hand on my shoulder and guided me through the docks. We walked till we came to a road.

"Wait here." He said.

"What are you going to do?" I asked.

He didn't answer.

A few minutes later, I heard a car screech to a stop.

"Get out of the car, right now!" Dad shouted.

"Ok, ok please don't shoot me." A woman cried out.

"Dad! We can't steal a car." I said.

"We have no time, get in." Dad said.

Before I could refuse, he pushed me into the car and we sped off.

"So now we're adding grand thief auto to your list." I said.

"What list?" he asked.

"Dealing illegal weapons, murder, dangerous driving and now grand thief auto. Anything else you plan to do tonight? Just so I can prepare myself."

"Freya, I know you're angry but you don't understand-"

"Damn right I don't understand. How could you sell military weapons? After everything you ever taught me to follow the rules, always do the right thing. You're nothing but a hypocrite."

"I had no choice, he threatened our family."

"Bull! Sam told me that he paid you, is that true?"

My Dad's silence gave me my answer.

"You're a hypocrite, I hate you."

"You don't mean that Freya." He said.

"Oh yes I do, after this is over I don't ever want to see you again." I shouted. "Where are we going anyway, hospital?"

"No, I'm taking to our old military base. You can get medical treatment there and then I'm taking you back to Japan, where I can protect you."

"You're joking if you think I'm going anywhere with you. Take me to the Tres Spades hotel."

"No, you won't be safe there. Sam's men will come after you." He said.

"No they won't, Eisuke will protect me."

"You're boyfriend? Well he's doing a great job so far."

"Huh! Kettle black. It's your fault I'm in this mess in the first place. Now, take me to the Tres Spades or I'll jump out of this car right now."

My Dad snorted in laughter.

"Oh, you think I'm joking?" I said.

I turned to then open the passenger door.

"No, stop." Dad said.

The car then skidded to a stop.

"Ok, fine. I'll take you to the hotel."

"Thank you, now drive." I ordered.

I sighed and leaned back into the seat, everything ached. My head, I had scuffed my knees when that explosion had thrown me to the floor. I could feel blood dripping down my face, from the wounds that were made by the glass. My arms and hands were the worst, I could feel the blood running down my arms. They throbbed with pain. Eisuke wasn't going to like this, he was going to be so mad.

After a while, the car came to a stop.

"We're here." Dad said.

"Good." I said.

I opened the door and stepped out of the car, I kept one hand on the car as I walked around it till I came to the front of the hotel. I had lost my glasses with all the chaos, but I could recognise the bright lights at the front of the hotel anywhere. There would be ten steps before I wound reach the lobby.

"I'm coming with you." Dad said.

"Whatever." I said and started to walk up the steps.

Dad opened the door for me, I felt so disorientated I couldn't even remember where the main reception desk was.

"Take me to the reception guest." I said.

Dad placed his hand on my shoulder and guided me forwards till we came to the desk.

"Hello-oh my god, Freya?" the receptionist gasped.

"Hey. I lost my key card to use the penthouse elevator, please may I have a new one?" I asked.

"What happened? Should I call you an ambulance?" she asked.

"No, just the elevator key please. Now." I said firmly.

"Uh… ok…" she muttered.

A few minutes later, she placed a thin plastic card in my hand.

"Thank you."

"Freya, are you sure you shouldn't go to hospital? You look terrible."

"I'm sure, but thanks." I said.

We walked away from the desk.

"Ok we need to get to the penthouse elevator, it's up the stairs. It's a big gold one." I said to Dad.

"Fine, this way." He said.

We walked up the main stairs and came to the lift, I used the card and we got it.

"This hotel is impressive." Dad said.

"Yeah it's great." I said uninterested.

"Freya, I'm sorry."

"I don't want to hear any apologises. Just get me to my room and then go away." I said.

The elevator pinged, I walked out of the elevator first and went straight up the corridor. I counted my steps and ran my hand along the wall till I felt the door to the penthouse lounge. Dad pushed them open for me and we both walked in. The room was buzzing with all the guys talking to each other, they all sounded so worried.

"Eisuke." I said loudly.

The whole room fell silent, I could feel everyone's eyes on me.

"Oh my god Freya." Baba said.

"What happened?" Ota asked.

I was so happy to be back that I burst into tears. Eisuke was at my side in seconds and I felt him wrap his strong arms around me.

"I was so scared. I thought I was never going to see you again." I sobbed and buried my face into his chest.

"Who are you?" Soryu asked.

"I'm Freya's father, General George Wells." Dad said.

I couldn't stand to hear his stupid voice anymore. I turned to face him.

"I'm here, I'm safe. I'm with Eisuke so you can leave. Get lost." I said.

"Freya, please. If you stay here, Sam's men will come after you again. If I'm not with you, I can't protect you." Dad said.

"What happened? Who did this to Freya? Tell me and I'll make sure that they won't come near her again." Eisuke said in harsh tone.

I had never heard him sound so angry before.

"This does not concern you, young man. Freya, come back to Japan with me. You'll be safe there." Dad said.

"You've got some nerve. I am not going anywhere with you so get lost. It's your fault that this all happened. You're a liar, you don't deserve to be a General. I don't ever want to see you again." I shouted.

"Freya-"

"Get out! Go, leave me alone!" I shouted even louder.

"You heard her. Leave." Soryu hissed.

"Yeah, I would rather not kick Freya's father out of the hotel but, I will." Baba said.

All the guys were jumping in to defend me.

My Dad sighed "Fine, Freya when you're ready to talk just give me a call." He said.

"Yeah, I wouldn't hold your breath." I hissed.

I heard him left and the doors to the lounge closed.

I sighed with relief and at that moment, it was as if all the strength left my body. My legs buckled but before I hit the floor, Eisuke scooped me up into his arms.

"Is Freya ok?" Ota asked.

"Doesn't look like it…" Baba said.

Eisuke remained silent, he turned and carried me out of the room. He brought me to our bedroom and placed me on the bed.

"Wait here." He said.

He moved away, I then heard running water and I could smell my favourite bubble bath. He returned minutes later and carried me to the bathroom. He helped me undress and lowered me into the bath.

I gasped and moaned as the hot water touched my wounds.

"Give me your arms." Eisuke ordered.

I held up my right one, he then started to gently clean and wash the wounds.

"What happened Freya? Tell me and I'll make sure that whoever did this, won't walk on this earth again." He said.

His harsh voice was starting to scare me, he must be so angry at this.

"I was kidnapped by a guy named Sam, I think he was part of the mafia or something. My father was selling military weapons to him. But then my father stopped, and Sam used me to blackmail my father. My father then came to rescue me, but things got out of hand." I said.

I then explained about the explosion and the car crash.

He finished with my arms and moved onto my face.

"I'm sorry." He said.

"For what?" I asked.

"I should have protected you. You're mine, it's my responsibility to look after my things. I won't let it happen it again."

"No, it's my father's fault. Not yours." I said.

I reached up and took hold of his hand and gave it gentle squeeze.

"Don't cry anymore, I don't like it when you cry." He said and wiped away my tears with his thumb.

After the bath, Eisuke helped me get dressed and carried me to bed even though I told him that I could walk. He dressed my wounds and then put me to bed. I led down and he pulled me into him and wrapped his arms around me.

"I won't let anyone hurt you again." He whispered in my ear.

I turned to face him and placed my forehead on his.

"I know. I'm sorry for worrying you." I said and gently stroked his cheek.

"No more apologised and no more tears. I forbid it, understand?" he said.

He then pulled me closer and placed a kiss on my lips, he then kissed every cut on my face before he moved down to my hands and arms.

He was being so sweet, I almost felt like crying again.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The next morning, I woke up with Eisuke's still arms around me. I felt so comfy in his arms, so safe. It was almost as if last night never happened. I pushed his arms off me and tried to slip out of bed, he tightened his grip and pulled me back.

"Where do you think you're going?" He asked.

"I was going to make us some breakfast." I said.

"How many times do I have to tell you? Don't get out of bed without my permission. And today, I forbid you to get out." He said before he got out of bed.

"But-"

"For once, don't argue you." He warned.

I heard him then walk away. He wasn't talking in his normal condescending way, he was still worried about me. I could hear only worry in his voice. I didn't have the strength to fight him, I rearranged the pillows and sat up in bed and waited till he came back.

When he came back, I instantly smelt tea, eggs and salmon. He then placed a tray on my lap.

"What's this?" I asked.

"What does it look like? I got you breakfast." He said.

"Really?"

I felt an English muffin which was topped with salmon and poached eggs.

"Is that a problem?" he asked.

"No, it's just… really sweet." I said and smiled.

"Sweet? Hm…" he then muttered something under his breath.

He was embarrassed again, I bet he was blushing. He may have his flaws but, Eisuke was such a great guy. I was lucky to have him.

"What's with the stupid grin on your face?" he asked.

"I'm just… so happy. Really happy." I said.

"Of course you are, you're with me. Now, eat your breakfast before it gets cold. And I don't want you to leave the hotel on your own. Understood?"

I nodded.

"You've also got the next week off work."

"A week? Eisuke I don't need a week off work. I'm fine."

"No arguments. Now I have to go to work, I'll come back later to check on you." He said.

"Eisuke, I'm fin-"

Before I could finish he planted a firm kiss on my lips and then he left the room. He was worrying for nothing, but it was very sweet of him.

After breakfast, I got changed and sat on the sofa. I was unsure of what to do with myself. I first tried to watch tv but there was nothing interesting on. I then tried to play my violin, but my hands were too sore, I couldn't touch the strings without my fingers burning. I made myself a cup of tea and stretched out on the sofa.

*knock knock*

"Come in." I said.

The door opened,

"Hey Freya! How are you feeling?" Baba asked.

"Hey Baba, hey Ota." I said and sat up.

"You look tired." Ota said.

"I'm fine." I said and tried my best to smile.

"If you ever need someone to make you feel better, I'm just down the hall." Baba said in a flirting tone.

"Yeah… I'm good thanks. Can I help you guys with anything?" I asked.

"We just wanted to check to make sure you were ok." Ota said.

"And we thought you'd be bored, so we came up here to play with you." Baba said.

I chuckled softly.

"Eisuke must be really worried if he asked you guys to keep an eye on me." I said and sipped my tea.

"Boss also asked us to give you this." Baba said.

He handed me a small box. I put my tea down and opened it, inside was an identical phone to my old one, a new cane and new glasses.

That's right, when I was kidnapped those guys threw them out of the window.

"The phone is exactly like your old one and it's the same number." Ota said.

"Thanks guys. So, would you guys like to do something? We could watch a movie, go to the casino…" I suggested.

"Boss doesn't want you to leave the room." Baba said.

I nodded.

"Movie it is then. You guys choose whatever one you want." I said and picked my tea up and continued drinking.

They both fought over what movie they wanted, we all huddled on the sofa and watched some kind of action movie. I was trying to keep up with the plot, but it was hard.

"How can you even watch films?" Ota asked.

"It's not hard. Normally I use the auto description option, but I can pretty much follow the film by what people say etc." I said.

A few hours later, I woke up lying back in bed. I sat up confused, how did I get here? Last thing I remembered was watching a film with Baba and Ota. I got out of bed and went back into the living room. I could smell coffee and I could hear the tapping of a key board.

"Hey Eisuke." I said.

I walked over to him and sat down next to him.

"Feeling better?" he asked.

"Yeah um… question, how did I end up back in bed?" I asked.

"When I came home, I found you asleep on the sofa, so I carried you to bed." He said.

I must have fallen asleep when I was with Baba and Ota.

"How was work?" I asked.

"Fine." He said.

I moved closer to him and wrapped my arms around his neck and planted a kiss on his lips.

"I'm ok, you don't need to worry about me anymore. So please, stop." I said.

He took hold of my wrist and removed my arms before he tenderly ran his fingers over the wounds on my arms and hands.

"How can I when the men that did this, are still out there?"

"No, Sam's dead it's fine."

"No, it's not fine. Soryu is hunting down the rest of Sam's men. Once they've all been taken care off, I will stop worrying. I won't stop till they are all dead."

I had never known him like this before, I just wanted the old Eisuke back.

"Anyway, you should go back to bed and rest. I'll bring you in dinner once it arrives." He said.

"But I can make us dinner." I said.

"No, go back to bed. Now." He ordered.

I knew he was only being nice but, I was getting tired of being ordered around.

"Eisuke, I'm not going to die just by making us dinner. I've got a few cuts and bruises, I'm fine." I said.

To prove it to him, I stood up and started to walk towards the kitchen. Then suddenly, I was floating in the air as he scooped me up and slung me over his shoulder.

"You never listen, do you?" he said angrily.

"Hey, put me down. Right now." I said.

"No, if you've got enough energy to cook, you've got enough energy to keep me company." He said.

He then started to walk. He gently placed me on the bed and leaned over me. I felt his soft lips touch mine briefly, before he pulled me into an embrace.

Huh? This wasn't all he was going to do was it?

He then pushed me down onto the bed and continued to hold me in his arms.

"Um Eisuke…"

"I just want to stay like this for a while longer." He whispered.

It wasn't long before he started to breath softly, he was fast sleep.

The next morning, Eisuke made me breakfast in bed before he went to work. I had a shower and got changed and sat on the sofa and changed the dressings on my arms and hands. I don't think I could spend another day stuck in here, I'd be bored out of my mine.

Just then, my phone started to ring.

"Hello."

"Hey Freya, it's Becca."

"Hey, what's up?" I asked.

"I've got us all those nice dresses, so I was hoping that you could pop round before Saturday and try yours on?"

Crap, I completely forgot about Saturday.

"Um, unfortunately I can't come out Saturday anymore." I said.

"What? Why? And you better have a good reason." She said.

Could I really tell her? It's not like it was a secrete or anything. So, I explained everything.

"Oh my god, you're serious?" she said.

"Yeah, it was horrible."

"And what's happening with your dad?" she asked.

"I don't know and I don't care." I said.

"Don't say that Freya, he's your Dad."

"I don't care." I said.

"Hm, well that settles it. I'll be there in 30 minutes."

"Where?" I asked.

"The hotel of course. See you in a bit." She said.

Before I could reply she hung up.

I made myself another cup of tea when Soryu came into the living room.

"Freya, you've got a visitor." He said.

"Oh, so you're my babysitter today, huh? Is it my friend Becca?"

"Yes."

"Ok, thank you."

"Freya." Becca beamed.

I heard her heals tap on the ground as she ran into the room. She practically jumped on me, wrapping her arms round my neck.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Can you let me go? I can't breathe."

"Sorry."

"Sit down, can I get you a drink?"

"A sherry would be nice."

"At this time of morning? Really?" I asked.

"What?"

I went into the kitchen and returned with her drink.

"Thank you. So, how are you holding up?" she asked.

"Honestly? I'm going out of my mind. Eisuke won't let me leave the hotel, he won't let me work. He won't let me do anything. You'd think I was dying."

Becca giggled "He's just worried about you. Have you told the police about the men who attacked you?"

Could I tell Becca about Soryu and the guys? Probably not, she wouldn't understand anyway.

"Yes, I did. They're going to try and find them." I said.

"Good. Oh, I have something for you."

She put a bag in my hands. I reached inside and felt a silk dress.

"It's your dress for when things settle down and we go out."

"You made it?"

"Yes. And since you can't come out I say we have a girlie night in on Saturday instead of going out. We can drink alcohol here, watch crappy movies and have a good time. What do you say?"

"I'll have to ask Eisuke but I'm sure that'll be fine. Where are we going to do it?"

"Here of course. This place is amazing." She said.

"I don't know if Eisuke would like that." I said hesitantly.

"Why? well, you'll just have to convince him. Won't you? Please! We need this and so do you. It'll make you feel better."

"Ok, I'll try and convince him."

"Good, now let's go and try the dress on."

We went to my room, Becca helped me get into the dress.

"Oh wow. You look hot."

"Yeah? You really think so?"

"Well obviously, I made the dress."

The dress was tight and showed off my curves. It was strapless and ran down to just above my knees. I ran my hands down it and swayed my hips.

"I like it, thank you."

"You're welcome."

Becca stayed round for a couple of hours. We watched a couple of movies, had lunch and basically just gossiped before she had to leave for work Eisuke should be back soon, I needed to try and convince him to let the girls round on Saturday.

The living room door opened.

"Hi Eisuke." I said.

"Hi Freya, how are you feeling?"

"Fine. Listen, I need to ask you a favour." I said.

"What kind of favour?"

He sat down next to me and stroked my injured hands and arms.

"Well, I was supposed to go out with my friends on Saturday, but I didn't think you'd approve."

"That's correct."

"So, my friends wanted to have a girlie get together and they wanted to come here. Would that be ok?" He didn't answer straight away, I was worried I may have upset him, so I quickly took it back. "But I understand if you don't want them here, so I'll tell them we can do it somewhere-"

"When do you want them to come round?"

Was he actually considering it? "Um... Saturday evening. If that's ok?"

"That's fine. I'll make sure the penthouse is empty." He said.

"Oh well, thank you so much. I appreciate it." I said.

"Why do you look so surprised? You live here, this is your home to. You can have your friends over if you want."

I smiled and put my arms around his neck and kissed his soft lips. "Thank you so much. You know, I've been feeling quite lonely today."

I then removed his jacket and started undoing his buttons. Eisuke then scooped me up and put me on the bed. I barely got the chance to sit up before he was on top, pinning me in place and removed my clothes. His breathing was rapid, he practically tore my clothes off. He was like a starved animal.

We spent all evening in each other's embrace, Eisuke was surprisingly gentle. He stopped every time I winced or gasped in pain. He kept his hands away from my arms. He kissed me tenderly on my neck, not even leaving a mark. I wasn't used to him being so gentle.

The next day, I was sat in the living room when my mobile phone went off. Playing a pop song, so I knew it was my sister Lucy.

"Hey Lucy."

"Hey Freya, how are you?" she asked.

"I'm fine, one second." I said. I went to my room and got my hands-free headset and plugged the headphones into my phone. "Ok, I'm back. So, what can I do for you?"

"Mum rang me, told me what happened."

"Really? Did she tell you the truth? Did you know that Dad's been selling weapons to the mafia and that because of him I was almost killed?"

"Yes, mum told me everything. She also told me that you're not speaking to them anymore?"

"Ok Lucy, don't start nagging me ok? How can I ever talk to Dad again after everything that's happened? I almost died."

"Yes, I know I know but you don't understand."

"Understand what?"

"When we were younger, you, me and mum were kidnapped by the mafia. You were probably too young to remember. The only way dad could save us was to sell them weapons. He only did it to protect us."

"No he did it for money. He was getting paid for it." I said.

"Ok Faye I'm not going to argue with you. Just please at least ring mum. She's really upset. Please. You don't have to talk to dad, but at least talk to mum."

I sighed "Ok, fine. I'll ring mum, ok?"

"Great thanks and I hope you feel better soon."

"Yeah thanks, bye." I said and hung up. There was no time like the present I guess. Exhaling deeply, I pressed the third button on my keypad. It was speed dial, Eisuke was number 1, my dad was number 2 and my mum was number 3.

"Hello?" my mum answered.

"Hey mum." I said after a moment of silence.

"Freya? Is that really you? Are you ok? I was so worried about you." She said tearfully on the other end of the phone.

Hearing the pain in her voice, brought tears to my eyes. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to worry you."

Meanwhile, Freya had no idea that Eisuke had entered the room. He had greeted but she didn't hear him as she was speaking on the phone through her handsfree headset. He was about to tap her on the shoulder and saw that she was crying. Instead of interrupting her conversation, he decided to step back and watch.

"I'm fine mum, really. I only had minor injuries." I said.

"Good I'm glad. Me and your dad are in England for a while longer, it would be nice to meet with you before we go back to Japan."

"I will happily meet with you but I don't want to see dad." I said firmly.

"Freya, please. You're dad is very sorry and would love to see you. We both miss you." She said and sounded like she was crying again.

"Mum, don't start crying because you'll make me cry." I said and burst into tears.

"Just please, meet us for lunch or dinner." She begged.

"I can't forgive dad for what he's done."

"Freya, you don't understand."

"I understand perfectly. He sold weapons to the mafia. Simple." I said.

"But not by choice."

"He was paid for it mum."

"He's never touched any of that money. I promise you." She said.

"I don't believe you. Look, I don't want to talk about this anymore. I can meet with you for lunch if you would like but I don't want to meet with dad. Ok? So how about you come to the hotel say… tomorrow and we'll have lunch. Ok?"

"Ok fine. Thank you sweetheart. But you're ok?"

"Yes fine. Anyway, I need to go so I'll see you tomorrow. Ok?" I said and hung up. I exhaled deeply and pulled the headphones out from my ears and wiped my tears away. I needed to lie down. Taking my phone with me, I went to my room and lead down on the bed crying into the pillow.

Eisuke followed, making sure he was quiet. He watched her as she threw herself onto the bed and buried her face into the pillow sobbing.

That evening, I was sat eating dinner with Eisuke. He was oddly quiet.

"Is everything ok Eisuke?" I asked.

"Why?"

"You seem quiet. Is everything ok?" I said.

I then heard something be placed onto the table. "What was that?" I asked.

"I looked into your father's financial records."

I started to choke on my drinking "You did what?! Why would you do that?!"

"The money your father's been receiving for the guns, he's not kept a single penny. The moment he received the money, he gave it away to charities and other organisations."

"Why are you telling me this?" I asked.

"I want you to have all of the information before you decide to not see your father again. It's up to you about what decision you make." He said. I then heard him stand and leave the table, leaving me there thinking about my father.

The next day, just as I promised, I was waiting in one of the restaurants in the hotel for my mum.

"Freya." She called out, I stood up and she hugged me.

"Hey Mum, hey Dad." I said and hugged him next.

"Hi Freya, I'm so glad we could meet. I'm so sorry, for everything." He said and hugged me tight.

"I know, I'm sorry too." I said and we all sat down.

A waiter came and took our orders and we enjoyed a nice lunch. It was like nothing had even happened, everything felt so natural and perfect.

Eisuke was stood at the far end of the restaurant, watching as Freya spoke with her parents. His lips curved at the edges as a small smile formed, he had finally seen Freya smile. He missed seeing her beautiful smile, it was always the first thing he saw when he came home from work. It always brightened his day, not that he was ever going to tell her that.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Friday afternoon, Eisuke took me to a famous restaurant downtown London. A waiter showed us to our table, I was surprised to find that someone was already waiting there for us.

It was Akira, Eisuke's adoptive father.

"Eisuke, it's so good to see you." He said.

"Likewise." Eisuke said.

Akira stood up to greet us.

All of my dressing had been removed from my hands and arms, the wounds were starting to heal nicely.

"You two haven't changed much at all." He said.

"We saw you at your last birthday party, remember?" Eisuke said.

"Yes, yes of course. I'm just pleased you both look so well."

"It's nice to see you again, Mr Ichinomiya." I said.

"And it's wonderful to see you again, Freya. I just had a feeling you'd still be with Eisuke, and I'm so pleased that I was right."

He spoke with such a warm, loving tone. I bet he was smiling as well.

"Thank you." I said.

Eisuke guided me to a chair and pulled it out for me to sit.

After some pleasantries, the topic shifted to the Tres Spades.

"So, you've expanded the hotels here to London, have you?"

"Yes, I thought it was time to start making our mark on Europe."

"I'm just so surprised at how quickly it all came about. I'm sure you were too, Freya?"

"I think I'm kind of used to it by now." I said.

"Oh? Hahaha…"

He laughed heartily at my response.

"I'm so pleased at how you've grown the business with your own hard work and dedication, Eisuke. Just be sure not to overextend yourself too much."

"Yes, of course." Eisuke said. He spoke evenly, as he always did.

I was always really relaxed around my family, but Eisuke's behaviour didn't change at all around Akira.

"I know you, Eisuke. I'm sure you're already planning even further expansions. Obviously, work is important, but the ability to protect the ones you love is the sign of a real man."

"He does a very good job of protecting me." I said.

Perhaps a little too well.

"Oh? I'm glad to hear it. Freya, please take good care of Eisuke."

I smiled and took hold of Eisuke's hand "Of course I will."

Eisuke didn't saw a word but he gently squeezed my hand in return.

On Saturday just as Eisuke had promised, the penthouse was empty. My friends came around for drinks, we ordered room service and watched several movies. I was hoping my friends could have met Eisuke but he was working so they missed him.

A few days later.

"Here's your coffee, Eisuke." I said and placed the cup on the table.

He was sat in the living room, working on his laptop.

"Mm." he replied.

"This is actually a new kind of coffee. I heard it's popular he-"

As I was talking, Eisuke reached over to me and started to unbutton my blouse.

"What are you doing?"

"Hush. You don't have to act so surprised."

"You startled me. Anyway, I'm in the middle of my shift." I said.

"Change into this."

He handed me a dress.

"Don't just stand there fidgeting. It's almost time."

The dress felt expensive.

"Are we going to the auction?" I asked.

"Yes, didn't I mention it?"

Nope.

"No, but I wish you would have."

"We don't have time to sit around and talk. Be ready by the time I finish my coffee."

Well, nice Eisuke didn't last long.

I got changed into the dress. We quickly went to the salon for my makeup and hair before we went to the auction.

I let out a sigh and sat down in the dim, slightly chilly VIP box.

"And now, tonight's main attraction. An extremely rare garter belt. This garter belt is made completely out of lace." The auctioneer said.

Upon the stage, he was introducing items as he always did. He sounded different from the one in Dubai.

"Didn't you steal that a long time ago, Baba?" Ota said.

"The hell'd ya steal somethin' like that?" Kishi said.

"Actually, that lace pattern used on the garter belt doesn't exist anymore. It's the only garter belt like it in the world." Baba said.

"Oh, I guess that's kind of intriguing." Ota said.

As I sat there with the guys, I couldn't help but feel like it's more subdued than usual. Maybe because it's the first auction here in London? But even the first one in Dubai was more lively than this one.

"Then it's sold to Bidder #88 – oh, pardon me, there's a bid from #152." *cough cough*

"Is it just me, or does the Mad Hatter seem like he's not feeling well? He seems paler than usual." Baba said.

"How the hell can you tell, the way he's got that make-up caked on his face?" Ota said.

"He got sick on the first night…. This isn't a good omen at all." Soryu said.

Eisuke didn't say anything.

After several items were sold, things seem a little more enthusiastic in the auction hall. There was a beautiful turquoise ring for sale after the garter belt.

"Wonder how much that'll go for. It's worth a lot." Ota said.

Despite increasing enthusiasm in the hall, the bids were going as high as usual.

"It kind of seems like the guests are bored tonight." I said.

"Normally the Mad Hatter can control the crowd and tempt them to big really high." Ota said.

The Auctioneer had a coughing fit.

"But he's completely useless tonight." Ota said.

"How high an item can sell for depends on how skilled the auctioneer is at controlling the crowd. He carefully observes the crowd and identifies who is competing with who. And most importantly, he knows the perfect time to make the item seem absolutely irresistible to the potential buyers." Baba explained.

"Now that you mention it, the Mad Hatter always seems to call right out to the people most interested in the items." I said.

"Exactly. And he knows just when each bidder is at his limit. The true talent of an auctioneer shows in his timing, ability to sense the mood of the crowd and power to infuse his own excitement into the auction."

"He's selling items, but…" Soryu began.

"I'm bored." Eisuke said.

That single comment brought our observation of the auction to a close. Even though the garter belt fetched a fair price, I can tell the guys were hoping for much more. All five of them were displeased when we arrived back in the penthouse afterwards.

"This was the first auction in London. Should've been a night to remember." Ota said.

"I wish it would've been more exciting." Baba said.

"More importantly, items didn't sell for nearly as much as they should have." Soryu said.

I could tell that Eisuke was upset and discouraged.

"Eisuke, would you like me to make some coffee?" I asked.

"Yes." He said.

"Freya, can I have some, too?" Baba asked.

"Me, too." Kishi said.

"Of course, I'll make enough for everyone. I bet the garter belt was really nice." I said.

"Want to hear something interesting? You know about the bouquet toss, but did you know there's also a garter toss?" Baba said.

"Really?"

"Yes, it originated in France. At the reception, the groom slides up inside the bride's dress and he takes off her garter belt without using his hands."

"Pfft. That sounds like its right up your alley, Baba." Ota said.

"No, no. It's every man's dream. So anyway, then he throws the garter belt over his shoulder, just like the bride down in her bouquet toss." Baba continued.

"Oh, let me guess and the one who catches it-"

"Yes. Is supposedly the next one to get married?"

"What a load of nonsense." Soryu said.

"But every man wants to get married at some point, right?" Baba said.

"Oh, is that how you start to think after 30?" Ota teased.

"Even you'll be an old man someday, Ota. And it'll be sooner than you think." Baba.

I brought the coffee over to the table and everyone took a cup.

"So, do all of you want to get married?" I asked.

"Married, huh? Me with a wife…" Kishi pondered.

"I do need to have an heir to secure the Ice Dragons' future." Soryu said.

"I'd welcome it with open arms if I had the chance." Baba said.

"But you never do, right?" Ota laughed.

"Why don't ya try to settle down first before ya try to have a family?" Kishi said.

"Don't you think that's kind of hard, in our line of work?" Baba said.

They were all kind of joking about it, but I could tell they all seemed positive about the idea of marriage. But Eisuke didn't say a word.

I wondered if we would ever get married? I wanted to get married someday.

Even if we did get married, I don't think things would really change.

"Marriage is a contract. Nothing more than a piece of paper." Eisuke said.

"I knew you'd say that." Ota said.

"You probably think nothing changes when you get married." Baba said.

"It doesn't. Except there's another person with your same last name."

"Come on now, don't talk like that in front of Freya." Baba said.

"It's fine. I think things really would be the same if we got married." I said.

But now that I've heard Eisuke's opinion, marriage seemed really far down the road. So far, in fact that I couldn't even imagine it.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Later that night, after the auction. Eisuke said that he still had work to do and left the penthouse. I decided to play my violin, my hands and fingers no longer hurt anymore.

One week later. I was starting to get used to working at the hotel and I wasn't getting lost that much anymore. Whilst I was walking with a co-worker, we heard a commotion.

"What's all that noise? I wondered if something's happened?" she said.

"Dunno, it sounds serious though."

We walked downstairs into the lobby when someone shouted.

"Hand over your money! This hotel's got a casino, so I how you get plenty of it."

This was a robbery?! I thought back to my training and my co-worker took hold of my hands.

"It's ok. Excuse me, everyone. Please return to your rooms." I said loudly.

"Please stay inside the hotel and calmly make your way to your rooms." My co-worker shouted.

I could hear screamed from every direction. The guests suddenly realized what was going on and they started hitting the ground or running towards the rooms. I needed to contact the police. I got out my mobile and tried to slip away. As I dialled, someone grabbed me from behind and wrapped an arm around my neck.

"Hey! Let me go!" I shouted.

"Don't move. You work here, don't you?"

I felt the cold sensation of a gun against my temple.

Not again! This brought back memories of Sam threatening to kill me. My body started to shake, I couldn't move. I could hear more people shouting and demanding money in the lobby. Two gunshots then rung out. More screams, more chaos as guests scattered and the man holding me hostage was distracted by the sounds.

I then felt a forceful tug on my arm, and I was freed from the gunman.

"Are you all right?" Eisuke asked.

"Eisuke!"

I was pulled into his arms and he held me tight.

"Sod off, you wanker!" the gunman shouted.

Shots fired and Eisuke shielded me from the bullets. He groaned as a bullet grazed his arm.

"Eisuke!"

"All right, all right. That's enough." Kishi said.

Kishi appeared out of nowhere behind the gunman and twisted his arm. The other gunman had already been captured by Soryu.

"You ok kid?" Kishi asked.

"I'm – I'm fine but Eisuke was shot."

"Calm down, I'm fine." He said.

I could feel blood from his arm.

"We need to stop the bleeding." I said.

The bullet tore through Eisuke's suit and blood was dripping down his arm.

"Damn it. All right, kid. You got a handkerchief or something?" Kishi asked.

"Yes, right here."

"You got a pretty shallow wound for bein' shot so close. He missed?" Kishi said.

"Yes. I could tell he wasn't used to handling a gun. His grip and aim were poor." Eisuke said as Kishi used the handkerchief to stop the wound from bleeding.

Soryu then walked up to us, after he had handed the gunmen over to the police.

"It's impossible for someone to hit a target when they're not used to shooing. And it's nearly impossible for an amateur to aim and follow through. "he said.

"You put away your piece?" Kishi asked.

"Gave it to one of my men."

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"Ya heard gunshots right? That was Soryu shootin' off his gun to distract those amateurs." Kishi said.

"I aimed at the floor, so make sure you have someone take care of the bullet holes later."

"Mm." Eisuke replied.

The police then came over to us, taking our witness statements. They let me go right away since I had little involvement, but since Eisuke was the hotels owner, they needed a detailed statement from him. He told me to go back to the penthouse and wait. I just hoped that his arm was alright. I couldn't believe what he did. He saved me, from being shot. If the gunman did know what he was doing, and if he didn't miss, the situation could have been different.

It sent shivers up my spine.

"Freya?"

I heard someone call my name. I turned around and saw two people coming towards me.

"We heard there was an attempted robbery. Can we help?"

It was Frank and his butler.

"Someone said Mr Ichinomiya was injured." His butler said.

"Yes, a bullet grazed his arm. Thankfully, it's not too serious."

Eisuke then came over to us.

"Are you ok?" I asked.

"I said, I'm fine. Settle down."

"Heard you had a rough go of it today, Eisuke. My security's the best in the business. Shall I lend you some of them?" Frank said.

"Thank you for very much for your concern. But that won't be necessary. I've learned a lot from today."

Eisuke politely turned down Frank's offer. But Franks till seemed worried, but said he didn't want to get in the way so he excused himself. We returned to the penthouse after Eisuke had received proper medical care.

"You all right? I heard it was crazy down there." Ota said.

"We were going to go down there too, but Mamo and Sor stopped us." Baba said.

"The last thing we needed was more hostages." Soryu said.

"Damn, I'm beat. Haven't worked that hard in a while." Kishi said.

My hands were still shaking. I couldn't believe I got held up at gun point, again. I felt calmer now that I was up here safe with everyone. I decided to make everyone coffee. When I brought Eisuke's over, he grabbed me by the wrist.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Help me drink it."

"What?"

"I can't move my arm. So, I'm going to need your help for a while." He said.

"You could just use your other arm." I said.

"It's not as strong as my injured arm. Too inconvenient." He said.

I sighed but he was so lovely when I was injured, I couldn't say no. I picked up the coffee cup and slowly lifted it up towards his mouth.

"Hey!"

"What?"

"Are you trying to scald me? Cool it off first." He said.

"Cool it off?"

"Pfft! He wants you to blow on it." Ota said laughing.

"Really?"

"C'mon now, this is gettin' a little too sappy." Kishi said.

"It's not my fault." I said.

"Hurry up." Eisuke said.

Was he seriously going to make me do this right now? In front of everyone?

"Eisuke, you don't need your arm to blow on it. You can do it your-"

"Stop wasting time and do it." He snapped. "And then bring me a newspaper and turn the pages for me."

"What? Are you kidding me?"

"Freya, I got a feelin' this is his awkward way of sayin' he wants ya to stay by his side today." Kishi said.

"Don't be ridiculous. I just need her to help me since I'm injured, that's all."

Ended up running around and doing things for a very "helpless" Eisuke that day. He barely let me leave his side, it was quite nice. He also told me that Soryu had managed to track down Sam's men and that they had been handled. Which was a relief.

A few days later, Eisuke's wound was almost healed. During work, he called me via the penthouse pager and told me to change and meet him in the lobby.

I wondered what he wanted me for?

"There you are." He said.

"Where are we going?" I asked.

"Just get in the car." He said and opened the door to the limousine for me.

He took me to a very expensive jewellery store.

"Um, why are we here?" I asked.

"Mr Ichinomiya. We've been waiting for you." The store owner said as we walked in.

"Do you have the item I requested?" Eisuke said.

"Yes, we have everything ready. We just need to get a size measured."

"I want it to be a perfect fit and money is no object."

"Congratulations Miss, you must be so excited." The owner said.

"For what?" I asked.

"We'll just get a size on you. Pardon me."

A woman took my left hand and started measuring my ring finger.

Why was Eisuke getting a ring custom made for me? He was up to something, but he wouldn't tell me a thing.

I let the woman finish and then we left the shop.

The next day, I got up and made breakfast. I went to wake Eisuke and we ate together. He then handed me a piece of paper.

"I need you to fill this out and sign it. When you're done, give it to Kenzaki." He said.

He gave me a pen and moved my hand to where he wanted me to sign.

"What is it?" I ran my fingers across the paper, it was written in brail.

"An application for marriage license."

Was he serious?

"What's the matter?" he asked.

"Um.. well… what is this?" I asked.

"Didn't you hear me?"

"I did but…"

"Even you agreed nothing would change if we got married." He said.

He was talking about the other day?

"I did say that, but-"

"It's simply filling out a piece of paper. It shouldn't be a problem." He said.

"There is a problem. Why are you bringing up marriage now, like this? That's why you got my ring finger measured."

Eisuke didn't even seem bothered.

"I can't handle this right now. I need time to think." I said.

"I'm not a very patient man, Freya. Make a decision quickly." He said shortly before he left the room.

I sat there shocked. I couldn't believe he proposed to me like that? Without one sweet word or a romantic gesture. It was so sudden, I didn't know what to do.

I rang Becca and a taxi brought me to her house.

"What happened, tell me everything." She said and handed me a cup of tea.

I sighed "Eisuke proposed."

"What!? How did he do it and what did you say?"

"He gave me a marriage license certificate and told me to fill it out."

"That's it?!"

"That's it. I mean, I've pictured the moment a guy asks me to marry him and this wasn't the way I pictured it."

"Why did he do that? Does he not realise how much a marriage proposal means?"

"It's because... He doesn't see marriage as something special or amazing. He stated that marriage is only a contract." I said.

She gasped "Men! They are hopeless. So, what are you going to do?"

"I don't know. I was just so shocked and it's so sudden."

"Well, do you want to marry him?" She asked.

"Yes I do, I love him but can I really marry a guy who is so different from me? How is a marriage going to work when we both view it in different ways?" I asked and sighed.

"Well, you need to talk to him. Ask him how he feels. You never know, he might just not know how to propose." She said.

Maybe. He didn't exactly have a normal life. Maybe because I saw my parents so happily married that I saw marriage as something else other than a contract. The only 'love' he's ever known was when he was adopted, but even that was a contract organised by his real father.

I stayed at Becca's for a few hours to cool off before I went back to the hotel, Eisuke was still at work. I sat down on the sofa and held the piece of paper in my hands. I didn't think this would happen for a long time, was I even ready to get married? I was only 26 years old.

I wondered what it would be like to be his wife, nothing would really change except my surname so why was I having such doubts? I picked up a pen and went to sign but as soon at the pen touched the paper, I couldn't bring myself to do it. Marriage was more than just a piece a paper. I thought back to everything we've been through, we've survived so much as a couple. I was happy with him, but we met at a black-market auction, and we only recently started living together. He still kept things from me and when I thought about it, did I even know him that well? Did he know me?

"Shouldn't marriage be when you know someone really well?"

Will things even work out if we get married at this stage in our relationship? That's when I realized, my fears and anxieties outweighed my feelings of happiness.

Just then, I heard Eisuke come home.

"Hi." I said.

"Mm." he replied.

He walked into the living room and stood next to me.

"Have you made your decision?"

"Um…"

He took the paper from my hands.

"Why didn't you fill it out?"

"Because…"

"Is there some kind of problem?" he asked.

"Do you really want to marry me, Eisuke?"

"I'm a busy man. I wouldn't go to all this trouble if I had no intention of marrying you." He said.

But I wasn't so sure. He was either hiding something or he was up to something.

"That's not what I mean. I'm talking about how you feel. It's just so sudden. I want to know, why now?"

He sighed heavily "If it's words you want, I'll say whatever you need to hear. Freya, please marry m-"

"No!"

I held my hand up and interrupted him.

"It's not that I need to hear the words, it's just… I feel insecure. There are so many things I don't know about you and that you don't know about me. I'm just uncomfortable marrying you with such distance between us." I said.

"That's what it is?" He said.

He reached out and lifted me into his arms. Before I had time to protest, he carried me into the bedroom. In a flash, he lowered me onto the bed and climbed on top of me.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"You said there's too many things you don't know about me. I'll show you all of me, right now."

"Wait… mmmm."

He pressed his lips against mine in a forceful kiss and yanked up my shirt. Just the feeling of his bare skin on mine, made me want to completely surrender to him.

But I couldn't, not today. I pushed my hands against his chest and pushed him away.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"This isn't what I meant, Eisuke. Marriage isn't a decision that can be taken so lightly. I love you, so much and I would like to be with you forever."

"Then just sign the papers and that'll be the end of it." He said.

"But it won't be the end of it. It'll just be the beginning. I can't think of it as just a contract, just a piece of paper. It means more to me than that. Please, just let me figure out how I feel." I said.

"Do whatever you want." He said.

He pushed himself up off the bed and disappeared into the bathroom. He seemed angry. But I couldn't marry him when we had such different ideas about marriage.

The next day, Eisuke had left for work before I woke up. I got changed and headed down to the conference room.

"Unfortunately, I have some bad news for you all this morning." Kenzaki said. "These past few days, we've had a large number of guests cancel their reservation. Some are cancelling reservations as far as one month in advance."

Hearing this, a buzz went through the crowd of staff members in the room.

"Obviously every hotel has a few cancellations every now and then. But at this point, it's clear that there's something more going on here." Kenzaki said.

"Yes, it's not a coincidence. They're cancelling because there's some kind of problem with our hotel. And if we don't fix the problem, our guests will be taking their business elsewhere." Erika said.

"I'm sure you've all heard that there was an attempted robbery at our hotel the other day. Ever since then, the public has been voicing their concerns regarding the safety here. We've added security since then, but it's no wonder the guests are still concerned. When there are a lot of empty rooms at a hotel, it gives a bad impression. We're going to implement several measures, and…"

Despite Kenzaki's reassurances, the staff still seemed worried.

"That robbery was really scary."

"But we were just a random target, right?"

"Especially since our hotel is brand new."

Everyone was really worried. I hoped nothing like that ever happened again.

"Pardon me for interrupting the meeting." Eisuke said.

The door opened, and he briskly walked into the room. Everyone immediately stopped talking and all eyes turned to him.

"As Mr Kenzaki has informed you, we are having more cancellations lately. And I'm sure there are those among you that feel concern over the recent incident. But please remember that whatever is going on with the hotel's business, should not impact our guests whatsoever. So, I ask you to please continue supporting the hotel by performing your duties as per usual." He said.

Everyone exchanged glances, clearly relieved to see how calm Eisuke was being. Even despite the recent turmoil.

"That's right. It would be rude to welcome guests without a bright smile on our faces." Erika said.

"Absolutely. Guests are very good at picking up on any anxieties the hotel staff has." Mr Kenzaki said.

"We've greatly increased the security and I'm taking measures to ensure that both you and the guests will never be put in danger like that again. Thank you all for your time." Eisuke continued.

The mood in the room is considerably brighter after hearing from Eisuke, Mr Kenzaki and Erika.

Everyone left the room with their normal smiles and bright sense of humour.

"Kenzaki, do you have a minute?" Eisuke said.

"Certainly, sir."

I watched them from the corner of the room. It was so like Eisuke, to just swoop into the room and have things under control in a matter of seconds. He was amazing, but this morning was awkward since he was already gone when I woke up. However, we were in the workplace so I needed to act professional.

I waited until he was done talking to the manager, before I walked up to him.

"Eisuke." I said.

"What is it?" he said.

"I'm sorry about last night and –"

"This isn't the time nor place to discuss that." he said sternly.

He was right, and I immediately regretted bringing it up.

"If that's all, you need to get back to work."

"Yes sir."

I bowed to both him and Mr Kenzaki and left the room.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

It's been several days since Eisuke proposed.

"Hey everyone." I said as I entered the penthouse lounge.

Everyone was there, except Eisuke. He's been so busy dealing with cancellations lately, I've hardly seen him. He comes home later and I still haven't given him my answer.

"You just missed Eisuke, Freya." Ota said.

"He's been so busy lately." I said.

"Yes, I've heard there are a lot of cancellations lately." Soryu said.

"Eh, I'm sure it'll pass." Kishi said.

"I hope so." I said and sighed.

"Freya?" Baba said.

"What?"

"Is something wrong? You look upset about something. You're worried about more than just the hotel, aren't you?"

He was so perceptive.

"I'm fine. I'm just worried about Eisuke, that's all."

"Are you sure that's really all?" he asked.

I sighed again, was there really any harm in talking to them about it?

"Ok, ok. Eisuke proposed to me the other day."

"What?! Are you for real right now?" Ota said.

"Boss proposed to you?" Baba said shocked.

"Damn." Kishi said.

"I can't even picture it." Soryu said.

"How did he do it? What did he say?" Baba asked with glee. It was like he was a teenage girl.

"He handed me the marriage application and said, 'Fill it out and give it to Kenzaki." I said.

"That's it?" Ota said.

"That's it." I said.

"He didn't take you to a fancy restaurant and get down on one knee or anything?!" Baba said.

"Nope."

Everyone was totally baffled at my response, but then Kishi started cracking up laughing.

"Now that's Eisuke for ya. Handin' ya the papers and just sayin' 'sign it'."

"But why so sudden? I mean, the other day he was acting like he had no interest in it whatsoever." Ota said.

"He even said marriage was nothing more than a contract." Soryu said.

"And Boss isn't one to get influenced by others." Baba said.

"Maybe he had some kind of epiphany. I really can't imagine Eisuke having a family, though." Ota started chuckling to himself.

"So? You sign it and turn it in, or what?" Kishi asked.

"No. I didn't know what to do." I said.

"Huh? You're not gonna marry Boss?" Baba asked.

"I want to, but I'm just not sure this is the right way or the right time." I said. "There's no way I can look at marriage in the same way as he does, like a piece of paper and nothing more."

"What does Eisuke say about all this?" Ota asked.

"I told him I wanted some time to get my feelings in order, and he told me to do whatever I wanted." I said.

Soryu seemed surprised. "Eisuke never waits for an answer."

"Really?"

"Right. He's always like 'You have no choice in the matter.'" Ota said.

"Boss hardly ever gives someone extra time. See, that just goes to show how much he loves you." Baba said.

Maybe they were right. I've never doubted Eisuke's love. Maybe I've just been overthinking things?

Not long after our conversation, I got a page from Eisuke.

I answered.

"Yes?"

"I'm in the VIP room with a guest." He said.

"Ok, I'll bring some tea." I said.

I hung up and then turned to look at the guys.

"Thanks for listening guys."

"Good luck." Baba said.

"It would be kind of funny if this is how you broke up." Ota laughed.

I ignored his rude comment and left the room.

I prepared some tea and headed up to the VIP room, where I found an unfamiliar guy sitting with Eisuke.

"Yes, if we do it that way it's 100% legal." The man said.

"Good, I thought that was the case." Eisuke said.

Was he a lawyer? Maybe he was consulting with him about the recent cancellations.

"Excuse me, I've brought some tea." I said.

"Oh, thank you." The man said.

"Leave if you're done." Eisuke said.

"Yes, sir."

I bowed politely and left the room. As I headed back to work, I thought about the proposal. Eisuke loved me, he treasured me more than anyone. I was happy with him and if we did get married, things probably wouldn't change. And if I could be this happy forever, that would be great.

I knew my answer.

A few days later, Eisuke took me down to the casino.

"Are you checking things out?" I asked.

"No, I'm done with work for today." He said.

"So, you're here for fun? That's unusual." I said.

"The cancellations have greatly decreased, but things are still going. I need to win back all the money they've cost me today." He said.

I knew there were a lot of cancellations, but could he really win that much money? Despite my concerns, he starts betting much more money than usual. And with a few spins of the roulette wheel he's won back all the cancelled room fees, and more.

"Whoa."

"I'm tired of roulette. Let's go to the tables." He said.

He wasn't done yet?

"You don't have to do all this, Eisuke. Our guests will return eventually." I said.

"Of course they will. I wouldn't let things continue like this. At any rate, I'm going to make back all the money we've lost because of cancellations to date."

Just how much would that even be? The crowd just kept growing as a very confident Eisuke kept winning.

"Hm? Hey, Freya." Baba said.

Appearing behind me.

"I almost never see Eisuke down here." Soryu said.

I moved away from the crowd and stood with them.

"He says he's going to win back all the money he'd lost in cancellations." I said.

Baba chuckled wryly.

"Oh, please. That's just an excuse."

"An excuse?" I said.

"I'm sure he's really frustrated that his guests are getting stolen. All the guests who cancelled here are staying over at that historic hotel by the river." Soryu said.

"Are you serious?" I asked.

"That hotel's been here for hundreds of years. If you're looking for a sense of security, you can't get much better than that." Baba said.

"Eisuke's been a sore loser ever since he was a boy. He always has to be number one at everything he does. He can't stand it otherwise." Soryu said.

"Looks like he hasn't changed." Baba said.

"He's always been a hard worker, so it didn't give him too much trouble. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get the top grade in our sewing class and he used to practice sewing for hours in our dorm room." Soryu said.

"Sewing? Seriously?" I laughed.

"Boss?! With a needle and thread?" Baba joined in with my laughter.

"I guess the reason he's always number one at everything is because of his work ethic." I said.

"Mm-hmm. Although right now I'm more worried about him draining the casino dry." Baba said.

I could hear cheers coming from the roulette table; apparently Eisuke won again.

We all couldn't help but laugh.

After we got back from the casino, I changed my clothes and made Eisuke some coffee.

"It was crazy down there." I said.

I sat on the sofa.

"I have to do that occasionally to keep things exciting at the casino." He said.

He sat down next to me and started to unbutton the top few buttons of his shirt.

He must be exhausted, he's been working so hard.

"Are you ok? Let me give you a massage. Was that guest you had in the VIP room a lawyer? I was wondering if maybe you were consulting him about the cancellations." I said.

"You don't have to worry about that." he said.

"I know… but I'm just concerned because you've been so busy lately."

"It's not a big deal. Problems like this come up all the time when you run a business." He said.

Now seemed the perfect time to tell him my decision.

"Eisuke… about you asking me to marry you." I said.

"Oh. That won't be necessary anymore." He interrupted me and stood up.

"What?"

"I changed my mind. Forget I ever said it."

I was so shocked at his response; my mind went blank.

"So, you don't want to marry me anymore?" I asked.

"As I said before, marriage is nothing more than a contract. It's not terribly important whether I get married or not." He said bluntly.

I guess that's what he really thought about it, so why did he ask me to marry him anyway? He was so forceful about it before, but now he seems completely uninterested in the subject of marriage. I then realised that the tables have turned. Marriage was never going to work unless both parties wanted it. We were never on the same page.

"We don't need to be married to show our love for each other. And that's more important than any contract."

He then swept me off my feet and carried me to my room. The instant he lowered me onto the bed, he was on top of me. He pressed my lips against mine. One by one, we tossed our clothes onto the floor and embraced each other, skin to skin.

Later, I nuzzled my face against his chest as he holds me in his arms.

"Eisuke?"

"What?"

"I do want to become your wife someday… so when you want to marry me, I'll be waiting."

He listened quietly and then I heard his deep voice above my head.

"If that's what you want."

I wondered if he would want to marry me someday? If the time ever came, I wouldn't hesitate. Because, I want to be with him forever.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

It's been a few days since Eisuke told me to forget about the engagement. I was sat in the penthouse next to Ota who was reading a magazine.

"What's going on, Eisuke? Our hotel's down again." Ota said, he was reading a London travel magazine.

"What do you mean down?" I asked.

"The hotel rankings. We were #4, before right?"

"Oh, you're right. We're all the way down to #9." Baba said.

"People are still cancelin', right? We'll probably be outta the top ten in no time." Kishi said.

"But Mr Kenzaki said things were improving." I said.

Everyone turned their attention to Eisuke. He was clearly in a bad mood, and Baba whispered into Ota's ear.

"Is Boss pissed?"

"Not even Eisuke could keep us from falling down in the rankings, huh.." Ota said.

"Eisuke." Soryu suddenly burst into the room, interrupting our conversation.

"What's wrong?" Eisuke asked.

"I had my men check out that burglary, just like you asked. And they found out there is someone behind both that and the cancellations." Soryu said.

"What'd they say?" Kishi asked.

"What's going on?" I asked.

"Does the name 'Frank' ring a bell?" Soryu asked.

"He's the owner of that hotel by the river, right?" Eisuke said.

"Yes, Frank Ackerson owns the hotel, but he also attended the same private boarding school we did." Soryu said.

"Wait a second, you went to school with the owner of that hotel?" Ota asked.

"I don't remember him." Eisuke said with a sigh, after a moments pause to think.

"You remember the pair of guys who picked a fight with me once in school? One of them was the headmaster's son. That was Frank."

"Now that you mention it, I think I remember him." Eisuke said.

"He's the one who framed you for the fire and tried to get you expelled. But he got suspended after you reported him and apparently, he was so ashamed at being suspended that he just dropped out. He made amends and took over the management of that hotel from his father."

"So Frank got close to Eisuke so he could take revenge on him?" I asked.

"I think so. Apparently, he's been spreading bad rumours about our hotel to make guests cancel. And he's also the person who hired those men to rob the place."

This was just so crazy, how could one man do all that?

"That reminds me... He did get here really fast the day of the robbery." Baba said.

"Yeah. He offered to lend Eisuke some of his security guards." I said. "He was probably being nice to catch us off guard."

An air of tension filled the room, but Eisuke didn't seem panicked at all.

"I'm not going to remember every random person I come across. That just goes to show you how little of an impression he made on me." He said.

"That's such an Eisuke thing to say." Ota said.

Everyone chuckled at Eisuke's comment.

"We can't let him get away with this! Let's go over there and kick his ass!" I said and lightly punched my fist.

"That won't do anything. You can do whatever you want to him after we get revenge." Eisuke said.

"Eisuke wouldn't let things just end like this." Ota said.

I imagined that Eisuke had a wicked grin on his face, he was definitely plotting something.

"That little dimwit can't do anything without his father's power. Let's see how he fares against me." Eisuke said.

"Whoa, I just got a chill." Baba said.

"I feel kind of sorry for Frank. 'cuz he picked the wrong guy to mess with." Ota said.

"He's done a lot of damage here. Eisuke's definitely not going to let him off easily." Soryu said.

Everyone nodded in agreement.

That weekend, Eisuke had to work so I went out shopping and was going to meet Becca and Sophie for lunch. I knew Eisuke was going to get back at Frank, Frank was totally playing dirty but England was a special place for Eisuke.

"I wish I could stop them. This place holds so many memories for him, and I don't want him to fight here." I couldn't wait to see what he was going to do.

"Hm? Miss Stone?" Someone said.

I stopped and turned to the sound of the voice, I recognised it. It was Frank's butler.

"Oh, hello." I said.

"What a coincidence." He said, he sounded so warm and welcoming. It made me feel uncomfortable.

I wondered if he knew what Frank had done?

"What is it?" He asked.

"Oh um... I'm sorry if it seems like it's coming out of nowhere, but do you know about Frank spreading bad rumours about the Tres of spades?"

"Yes, I know about that." he said sounding uncomfortable.

"Ok."

"So that's what caused your smile to disappear. I tried to stop him many times, but he would not listen. I'm so sorry."

"So you don't agree with what he did, then?"

"Of course not, I'm fine with honest competition when it comes to business, but what master Frank did was not right, Intolerable, in fact."

"He wants revenge on Eisuke, doesn't he?" I asked.

"Yes.. He still holds a grudge over what happened in their school days. That's no excuse for his behaviour, of course." He continued. "He did get into some trouble after he dropped out of school, but he's changed his ways and has shown great talent for business since taking over management of Master Ackerson's hotel."

"Yes, I believe you. Otherwise his hotel wouldn't be ranked number one." I said.

"That's right, he's been on the straight and narrow since becoming the owner. But when he found out Mr Ichinomiya was expanding his business in London, that stirred up his desire for revenge once more." He said.

So that's why Frank did that.

"Obviously I can't be too forward with Master Frank, since I'm merely a servant so I'm very sorry for all the trouble he has caused you."

"Thank you. It's reassuring to hear that you don't agree with his actions either."

I knew neither Frank or Eisuke would back down, I wondered how long the fight would last?

"Your beautiful face looks better with a smile on it, you know." He said.

"Thank you." I said cautiously.

"I must be going now."

He departed with a gentle smile, disappearing into the crowd.

How could such a nice guy work for a guy like Frank?

Several days later, after work Eisuke invited me to a party. I was getting used to changing into these fancy dresses with no notice. He said the party today was being hosted by a company he does business with. I was nervous to go as his date to such an important function. I walked into the ballroom when Eisuke greeted me.

"You're late." He said.

"Hello there Freya. I hope you're well." Frank said pleasantly.

Frank was here to? Why? What was he up to? Perhaps he had no idea that we were on to him?

"I've been quite concerned, you know. Word has it that you've been losing guests since that burglary incident. Your time so far in England hasn't been easy, has it?" he said.

"Even after Soryu told me everything, I couldn't remember. But now it's all coming back to me, thanks to that awful smile on your face."

"Come again?"

"I see your cowardly methods haven't changed a bit. A handful of cancelations here and there doesn't come close to making a dent in my profits." Eisuke said making Frank scowl.

Eisuke sneered in return. "I hear you're still relying on your daddy for money? You haven't changed a bit. I suggest you save every penny from daddy, because you're going to need it."

"You son of a- I never forgot my hatred of you. But you're still saying you forgot me?"

"Honestly, I didn't even want to remember."

"Because of you, my life was ruined." Frank was starting to shout and get angry, but Eisuke kept calm. "I swear I'll make you pay for what you've done."

"Master Frank, please calm down. This is not the time nor the place." Frank's butler said, appearing out of nowhere.

"No, I must say my piece, or I won't be satisfied. I'm going to take away everything you hold dear and make you bow before me." Frank said with a sinister sound to his voice. "Recognise this?" he said.

"What is it?" I asked Eisuke.

"A ring that was put up for auction." He answered.

"How did you get that?" I asked.

"Did you think I didn't know about your black-market auctions? Not only did I witness them, but I bought this." Frank said.

"Why?" I asked.

"To see how the transactions work at the auctions, of course. Quite a dangerous thing you're dabbling in, these auctions."

"I'm sure your pea brain could've never even have conceived of it." Eisuke said with a laugh, clearly trying to challenge him.

"Your bravery won't last long. Before long, those auctions will be mine."

"You don't have the brains or the power. And even if you did somehow manage it, your incompetence would ruin it in no time."

"Don't make a fool out of me." Frank shouted.

"Give it your best shot. I'm a busy man, I don't have time to flick away every measly fly that comes buzzing around my tail."

"I want you to remember this moment. Because it's the very beginning of the Ichinomiya zaibatsu's downfall." Frank turned and left, full of confidence with his butler reluctantly following him. Eisuke didn't even watch him leave, he turned and left. I ran after him.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

After we got home from the party, I was feeling anxious. What if Frank went to the press about the existence of the auctions? No, he wouldn't do that because he said he wanted to know how the system works. I wandered what he was capable of? He said he'd take away everything of Eisuke's.

"Hey." Eisuke said.

"What?"

"What with the gloomy look on your face?"

I was so lost in my thoughts I didn't even notice him come into the bedroom.

"I don't ever want to see that look on your face again." He said.

"But I'm worried about you, Eis-Whoa." He suddenly unzipped my dress, before I knew it my dress was down to my waist and he was planting kisses on my bare skin. As soon as my dress fell to the floor, he pushed me down onto the bed. I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him in for a kiss.

"I like the look on your face now much better. Right now, I want you to stop worrying and let me make you moan."

"Go for it." I said and started kissing his neck.

Several days had passed since the party and Frank hadn't made his move. I wondered if his butler had stopped me from doing anything? I was on my way to the changing rooms to get changed into my uniform, when I passed some people in the lobby. I recognised some of the voices, they belonged to managers and directors. I had a bad feeling about this, so I decided to go up to the penthouse. Just as I headed to the elevator, Eisuke entered the lobby, he walked straight over to me and spoke in a low voice.

"Go up to the penthouse, Baba and the others are waiting."

"What's going on?"

"Just go." He said and walked towards the elevator.

I raced up to the penthouse lounge and found Baba and the others staring at the tv.

"Eisuke told me to come up here." I said.

"How are you doing?" Baba asked.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't you know about this yet?" Ota asked.

"About what?" I asked.

"It's all over the news. Eisuke's resigning." Baba said.

"What? Why? What's going on?"

"Exactly what Baba said." Kishi said.

"And the new owner is Frank." Baba said.

"Frank?!"

"He got us." Ota said.

"I didn't expect him to go this far." Soryu said sternly. "There was an emergency stock holders' meeting and they voted no-confidence in Eisuke. Their reasoning was the attempted burglary which resulted in the cancellations."

"But Eisuke's done so much. How could they make him resign so quickly?" I said.

"It's odd. Everything's going too smoothly." Baba said.

"Frank must have paid off the stock holders. I'm sure of it." Soryu said.

"Really?"

"Basically, he rigged the whole thing." Ota said.

"What's going to happen to the hotel? Is it going to be shut down?" I asked.

"Since Frank's the new owner, I'm sure he'll want to keep it open and operating. But the hotel is no longer Eisuke's." Soryu said.

"Frank's playing with fire." Baba said.

"Frank said he'd take away everything that belongs to Eisuke. I didn't think he'd actually be able to do it." I said. But Eisuke had a plan right? He always has a plan. Just then, he walked into the room.

"You ok, Boss?" Baba said.

"Yes. I apologise, but you'll all have to find somewhere else to stay for a while." Eisuke said.

Everyone accepted this calmly.

"Yeah, there's no way we can stay in the penthouse suites since the hotel belongs to Frank now." Boss said.

"I wish you would've told us earlier. But this is you we're talking about. You had an idea this was going to happen, didn't you?" Ota said, sounding irritated.

"Sometimes the unexpected is what makes life interesting, don't you think?" Eisuke said.

"I guess you're right, I was just starting to get bored with things here, so it's good timing." Ota said.

"I'm sad that we won't be able to see Freya, though." Baba said. "Even though we shall be apart, please do not forget me Freya."

"I won't, don't worry." I said. He and Baba then left the penthouse together, acting totally blasé about the whole thing. "How can you all be so calm? Frank just took over this hotel. We should be doing something."

"Didn't you hear what Eisuke just said, kid? He said we gotta find somewhere else to be 'for a while'." Kishi said.

"I don't think it'll take long for me to end this." Eisuke said.

"So when do you think you'll get the hotel back?" I asked.

"It's up to Eisuke when he'll do it." Soryu said.

"I said, it won't take long." Eisuke said firmly.

Seemingly satisfied with Eisuke's answer, Soryu and Kishi left the room.

"So I guess we should leave to." I said.

"Looks like we have to, but you'll stay here and continue working." He said.

"Really?"

"I've had a room in the employee dormitory prepared for you. Go to Kenzaki, he'll tell you the rest." He said.

I guess I didn't have much of a choice, but this wasn't fair. "I don't like this. It isn't fair, you worked so hard only to have it all taken away from you."

"Did you forget what I told you before?" he took a step closer to me and titled my chin up "I don't want to see that gloomy look on your face again."

"I can't help it, I can't just act like nothing's happened."

"This is just one moment in my very long career of owning and operating hotels. In the end, it's not going to mater if he takes it away for a few days." He said.

I smiled at him "You're right."

Just then, an announcement for the employees came over the intercom. "Attention all hotel employees, please proceed to the lobby for an announcement from our new owner, Mr Ackerson."

I scowled at the thought of Frank being the new owner.

"I'll let him enjoy this for a bit, while it lasts. Because my revenge on him will be a thousand times worse than his." Eisuke said.

"I hope so." I said.

"Listen to me." He placed his hand on my cheek and turned my head, so I was facing him "Even though you're staying here, don't you dare make coffee for anyone but me. No matter where I go, don't you forget that you're mine."

I placed my hand over his "Of course I am. No matter where you are, no matter what happens, you're the only one for me, Eisuke."

He planted a soft kiss on my lips.

"I'll wait for you. This is your hotel, Eisuke. No one else's."

"Hurry up and get down to the lobby." He said.

"Ok."

After the announcement in the lobby, I moved my things into the staff dormitory. It felt like I was back in Japan, before I met Eisuke. It was like déjà vu.

It had been several days since Frank took over ownership of the hotel and the story was all over the news and media. The reporters were saying that Frank was a more suitable owner then Eisuke since he owns that historical hotel. The news turned to another story about the hotel becoming Frank's, so I turned the TV off. I threw the remote to the floor in frustration, I don't suppose I could just quit. I wasn't the only one who was tempted to quit, everyone else wanted Eisuke to come back. I started to get ready for my shift. I went to the staff changing rooms and got changed, I found someone to do my hair before I headed to the spa. My day went by in a blur, the only difference was I wasn't constantly paged up to the penthouse. I left the spa and walked through the lobby to start my lunch break, when Frank's butler approached me.

"Miss Stone, I'm sorry for showing up here so suddenly."

"Hello. Can I help you?"

"Might I have a moment of your time?" he said.

"Sure." I said and agreed to go to a nearby café with him.

"I tried to stop Master Frank, but it didn't work. I blame it on my powerlessness." He said apologetically as a waitress brought us lunch with tea.

"Please don't apologise, it's not your fault."

"I had no idea he would go to such lengths. I thought he was truly devoted to protecting the hotel his father gave him."

"Why does Frank hate Eisuke so much?" I asked as I took a sip of my tea. "I know a lot went on between them in the past but.."

"Did you know that Master Frank dropped out of school?"

"Yes, I heard he did that after he got suspended." I said.

"That's right. And that put the Ackerson family on the brink of financial ruin." The Butler said sadly.

"Financial ruin?"

"The hotel by the river used to be managed by his father, Master Ackerson. But after Mr Ichinomiya exposed master Frank's bad behaviour, he was faced with a suspension. And master Frank was... quite out of control for some time."

"Really?"

"I cannot speak of this too loudly, but there were several incidents involving injuries. Word of this spread, resulting in troubles for Master Ackerson at work. The family was disgraced and that was the beginning of their financial ruin. The hotel that Master Frank is operating now is the very last assets of the family." he said.

I had no idea, I felt kind of sorry for Frank.

"The hotel suffered a loss of guests because of the families damaged reputation. But thanks to Master Frank's charisma and Master Ackerson's business skills as a chairman, the hotel became the top hotel in London. Master Ackerson never mentioned it, but I know that Master Frank knows that he is the cause of his family's loss of fortune. He has worked tirelessly to atone for this, to show his father his gratitude."

Maybe Frank wasn't as bad as Eisuke and the others made him out to be? But that was no excuse for what he did.

"I'm sure Master Frank is jealous of Mr Ichinomiya's natural abilities, but he's gone too far this time."

"I agree." I said.

"I tried to stop him several times, but..."

My heart ached when I saw the remorseful look on the Butler's face.

"I'll talk to Eisuke about it and try to persuade him not to fight anymore." I said.

"I would really appreciate that. But I will keep trying to change Master's mind."

We said our goodbyes and he put his number in my mobile, before he walked me back to the hotel. Maybe Frank wasn't a bad person, maybe he just couldn't get over the past and needed help.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

That night, after work I visited the hotel Eisuke was staying at.

"You met with the butler?" he asked.

"Yes, he told me what happened after Frank dropped out of school." I told Eisuke everything the butler told me.

"Right now, he might be consumed with thoughts of revenge against you. But I'm sure once he's calmed down, he'll realise how stupid he's being." I said.

"I'm not expecting him to feel sorry for his actions. Because I know he's not the type of man who's capable of that."

"But this place is special for you, Eisuke. Full of precious memories and I don't want you to fight here. The Butler said he'd talk to Frank's father. So, can't you just try to peacefully negotiate the return of the hotel?" I asked.

"You saw Frank's true colours. You know he's not the type of man who will listen to reason. I feel sorry for his father. His company nearly went bankrupt because of his good-for-nothing son." He said.

"The butler said Frank's father hid the fact that it was his fault that the family business suffered. Maybe he thought it would hurt Frank too much if he knew the truth. I think his father's concern for him was what made Frank have a change of heart." I said.

"He probably didn't say anything because his son is such an idiot he wouldn't even understand. I don't care about his feelings, it's too late for that. Anything I do now can't change what happened in the past, and that's a fact." He said coldly.

I understood where he was coming from, Frank had hurt him and he wanted revenge but if there was a way to solve this without fighting we should do it.

"I would never lose to someone who would let something as trivial as family impact their behaviour. And I thought I told you to trust me and not worry about anything."

My heart stopped from a moment when he said this,

"How can you say that? What about your sister?"

"Yukari has the family that adopted her and now she belongs with her husband and his family."

"But what about Akira? He cares for you so much." I said.

"We're not related by blood, he's basically a stranger to me. He's my adoptive father because of a contract. My father on paper, that's all."

A contract? I instantly thought of us getting married, he thought that was a contract.

"Akira would be sad to hear that, he loves you Eisuke."

"He knows that it's true. He continues to have a relationship with me because of my talents as a businessman. He would have abandoned me long ago if I weren't so skilled. Family is nothing more than a nuisance to me. I don't need anything in my life that would impair my judgment on important matters." His voice was lower than usual, almost like he despises the very idea of family.

Was this what he thought about marry me? And that's why he didn't care one way or the other about it? How could he think like this?

"If we ever get married, we'd become family. So, would family still be nothing more than a nuisance to you then? Something you don't want in your life?" I asked coldly.

He didn't answer my question, we just stood looking at each other.

Well, that answered that question. I turned and ran out of the room, he didn't even try to stop me. I didn't want to be alone, so I rang Becca, who welcomed me with open arms. She decided that the whole gang needed to be there, so she invited Sophie and Lucy as well.

"What happened?" Sophie asked. We were all sat in Becca's living rooms, drinking wine.

"Me and Eisuke kind of had a fight." I said.

"Kind of?" Lucy asked.

"It's complicated." I said and took a big gulp of my wine. "Me and Eisuke just keep having issues. I swear being with someone shouldn't be this hard. You guys heard about the way he proposed to me, right?"

"Yeah it was so lame." Lucy said.

"He sees marriage as a contract, I see it as way to prove your love and start your life together." I said. I explained to them about his views on family.

"What a horrible thing to say!" Becca said shocked.

"But he's never had a family, not like ours. He was adopted, so he doesn't know how amazing it is to have a family who cares and who embarrasses you every moment they get. But I'm scared if we get married that's what he'll think of me."

What if one day I became a nuisance and Eisuke decided to let me go?

What a stupid thing for me to think, Eisuke had saved me several times and even got shot trying to save me. Maybe the solution to this would be to never get married? But I wanted to get married, more than anything. I had my dream wedding planned since I was 7 years old. But I loved him, and I wanted to be with him.

"You know what we need, ice cream." Becca said and brought a tub of ice cream from the kitchen.

"Ok, new rule, tonight we don't talk about guys. Let's just eat ice cream and watch chick flicks." Sophie said.

"And get drunk." Lucy said.

I smiled and held up my glass "Agreed."

A few days later, I was back at work. Eisuke hadn't even tried to contact me since I left. He was so stubborn, but I was stubborn to so that didn't help things either. I was sat in my treatment room folding towels and tidying before my shift ended. As I left the spa and headed to the staff changing rooms, I heard a commotion. There was a group of people in the lobby, talking and making noise.

What was going on? As I started to approach the group, someone approached me.

"Miss Wells." Someone said.

I turned and saw Frank stood behind me smiling.

"Hi Frank." I said and smiled back.

"What are you doing here? Had enough of Eisuke, want to be with a real man?"

He looked so smug, I had to remind myself of what the Butler had told me otherwise I would have punched him in the face. This was the perfect opportunity, I could try and convince Frank to give the hotel back to Eisuke.

"Frank, can I have a word with you in private?"

"Of course, this way." He said.

I followed him to his office, he offered me a drink but I refused.

"Listen Frank, I want you to please stop this stupid behaviour and give Eisuke's his hotel back before things turn nasty." I said.

He laughed "Is that a threat, Freya?" He asked.

"No. Eisuke is ruthless, he will take you down and you will lose everything your father has given you. Just give Eisuke's hotel back and things can go back to normal. You can run your father's hotel without any problem and no one will get hurt." I said.

Frank chuckled "I'm not the one who is going to get hurt, Eisuke will be. I won't stop till I have everything he owns."

"You are such a child! Why can't you forget about the past? Haven't you hurt your family enough? If you keep going like this, you'll lose everything."

He sneered "No Freya, Eisuke will loose everything."

I sighed this was helpless, they were both as stubborn as each other. This was a total waste of time.

"Where are you going?" He asked as I stood up.

"I'm going home." I said.

"No you're not." He said coldly and grabbed my wrist "I will have everything Eisuke owns, including you."

I laughed "Remove your hand. Now." I said and tried to wriggle free.

"No, you're mine now Freya just like Eisuke will be soon."

"What's that supposed to mean?" I asked.

"You don't know? In exchange for the deed to the hotel, Eisuke has offered himself up for auction. I will buy him and then use him as my slave." He said with a dark chuckle. I could only imagine the type of grin he had on his face.

"I won't let you hurt him." I pulled my hand free and tried to run to the door, but I was disorientated. By the time I came to the door, Frank had blocked my way and held the door closed.

"You won't interfere but if you insist on watching the auction, that won't be a problem." He said.

He took hold of my arm and dragged me out of his office and escorted me up to the penthouse and tied me to a chair in front of the big TV. He also forced a gag into my mouth.

"Enjoy the show." He said and left the room.

It was weird being back here. I listened to the TV, from the sound of it, the deed was being sold at the auctions and Eisuke was bidding on it. At least he got the hotel back but Frank was going to buy him. I had to save Eisuke!

I struggled and tried to get my hands free. I don't know where my handbag was, it was on my shoulder but now it was gone. I needed to get out of here and get help. My hands were tied to the arms of the chair, but my legs were free. I stood up, lifting the chair up off the floor and walked forwards before I swung the chair into a nearby wall which I knew was just in front of me. I swung the chair till the chair broke and I was free. I removed the ropes and the gag.

I needed to get to the auctions, but Frank had probably change things, so I couldn't just walk in there. Instead, I went over to the phone in the penthouse and dialled Soryu's number.

"Where are you?" He demanded.

"In the penthouse."

"Stay there." he said. Within minutes, he came into the penthouse. "What happened?" He asked.

"I confronted Frank and he brought me up here and tied me up." I explained.

"Why do you always cause so much trouble?" He asked sounding displeased.

"I honestly don't know. It's starting to freak me out. Eisuke is selling himself at the auction in exchange for the deed to the hotel." I said and rubbed my sore wrists.

"I know." He said.

"You know?! Then why are you letting him do it?"

"It's all part of his plan. We did try ringing you before the auction, but you didn't answer your phone."

"I was at work, it's still in my locker." I said.

"Let's go." He said and took hold of my hand.

We went down together, Soryu forced his way through the guards and we came to the stage. Eisuke was still in the cage but the auction was coming to a close.

"Sold to #86 for 1.5 billion." The auctioneer announced.

Frank was stood by the cage. "This was a thrilling auction. "

I went to go Eisuke but Soryu had hold of my arm and pulled me back. "Don't do anything stupid." He whispered.

"That brings the auction to a close." An announcement came over the loudspeaker. The auction hall was oddly quiet, I bet everyone was eager to see what was going to happen to Eisuke.

He has a plan. He always has a plan. I told myself over and over.

"Open the cage." Frank ordered.

The staff members hesitated, but they pulled Eisuke from the cage and handcuffed his hands behind his back. Why was Soryu just standing there? He should be going to help him!

"Police! Everyone, get your hands up in the air now! We got a tip off that there's human trafficking going on in here!"

Suddenly the door burst open and Kishi charged in, followed by several police officers.

"What's going on?!" Frank gasped.

"You Frank Ackerson? You're under arrest for human trafficking." Kishi said and handcuffed Frank.

I sighed with relief and smiled, this must be Eisuke's plan all along. I did warn Frank what would happen if he crossed Eisuke.

"There's been some kind of mistake! Why me?!" Frank shouted out. "These auctions belong to Eisuke, he's the one who started them!"

"What in the world are you talking about?" Eisuke said sounding shocked.

"Give it up Ackerson." Kishi said.

"Mister detective, thank you ever so much for coming and saving me. I was nearly sold into the slave trade." Eisuke said.

"Why, that's terrible!" Kishi said.

"Dammit! How the hell did you call the police?! The security here is airtight! Eisuke, what did you do, you bastard?!"

"I did nothing during the auction, you saw that with your own eyes. The police 'just happened' to come at the perfect time." Eisuke answered.

"Yep, quite the coinkydink, huh?" Kishi said.

"There's no way this was a coincidence!"

Whilst Frank was being read his rights, the other police officers rounded up his staff. Two police officers approached me and Soryu.

"Were you part of this auction to?"

"No, they work for Mr Ichinomiya. They were forced to participate by Frank, who threatened their lives." Kishi explained and the two officers left us alone.

"Eisuke really is ruthless, isn't he?" I said to Soryu .

"Yes." He was still holding onto my arm tight.

I couldn't help but feel kind of sorry for Frank, he had lost everything and now his family were going to lose everything. Kishi removed Eisuke's handcuffs, I heard Eisuke chuckle proudly.

"I bet Ackerson never dreamed a cop was workin' for ya, huh?" Kishi said.

"That's why he always loses." Eisuke said.

"It was risky plan." Kishi said.

Eisuke walked towards us, Soryu finally removed his arm.

"You.. You prick!" I shouted and punched Eisuke in the arm.

"What was that for?" He asked bewildered.

I heard Soryu and Kishi snigger as I punched him.

"For worrying me and for not apologizing for the other night." I said and glared at him. "Don't ever do something like that to me again."

He looked at me and then sighed before leaning over and swept me off my feet, carrying me in his arms.

"You're so much trouble."

"Put me down." I ordered.

He ignored me and carried me out of the auction hall.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

We returned to the lobby and were greeted by Mr Kenzaki.

"Welcome back, sir." He said. "And welcome back Freya."

"Mr Ichinomiya, I've already completed the paperwork transferring the ownership."

"Already?" Eisuke said.

"Yes, sir. It won't do for anyone but you to be the owner of the Tres Spades. I have the penthouse all prepared for you whenever you may need it sir. I'm sure you both must be very tired. Please, go and rest." Mr Kenzaki said.

"Yes, thank you. I think we'll do that." Eisuke said and put an arm around my shoulders and we walked up to the penthouse.

I felt so relieved when I got back to the familiar room that tears filled my eyes.

"Crying again?" Eisuke said.

"I can't help it. So much has happened recently. I'm glad you didn't get sold." I said.

"Yes, however…" he ignored my tears and spoke in an exasperated tone of voice. He grabbed my left hand.

"What is it?"

"Stay still." He said. He pulled my hand towards him and felt him slip something cold over my ring finger. It took me a moment to realise that it was an engagement ring. "You know what this mean, don't you?"

"Well…" I ran my fingers over the ring, judging the size of the diamond and the ring, I bet is sparkled like a star.

"I'll only say this once, so listen carefully. Marry me, Freya."

Did he seriously just say that? My mouth dropped.

He pulled me close and whispered into my ear "Say yes."

I couldn't help but smile, his proposal was aggressive, just like he usually was. I expected nothing else.

"How long are you going to make me wait this time?" he said.

"What?"

"We're going to be a family, right?"

I grabbed onto him and hugged him "I want us to be a family. I would love to be your wife." I said and stood on my tiptoes and gave him a kiss.

Next day, we met everyone in the penthouse.

"Freya, long time no see." Baba beamed.

"Mamoru told us everything. That was so crazy." Ota said.

"It wasn't a big deal. I just got back what was mine. I couldn't let that fool be in charge of my hotel for another minute. I didn't want my reputation damaged any further." Eisuke said and sat down on the sofa, pulling me with him.

"It's all over the news." Soryu said.

The press reported that Frank was jealous over the Tres Spades success and that's why he sought revenge against Eisuke. But now, Eisuke was the owner of the hotel again.

"We busted him on human trafficking and bribery." Kishi said. "Even if he manages to get outta the slammer, he ain't gonna work in this industry again."

"Good for you Eisuke. Now you have one less rival hotel to worry about." Ota said.

"Please. I hardly call someone who owned one measly hotel my rival." Eisuke said.

"So at least the controversy over who owns this hotel is over." Baba said.

We all watched the tv. Thanks to the media reports, most of the public feels sympathy for Eisuke at having been almost sold.

"It's strange." Eisuke said.

"What is?" I asked.

"Frank's methods were much skilled than before. Getting close to me to take over the hotel, putting me for auction in order to exact revenge…he's much more clever then he was when we were in school." Eisuke said.

"I'm sure he spent all these years improving himself so he could get revenge on you." Soryu said.

"No, his butler said it wasn't until Eisuke showed up in London that his desire for revenge was re-ignited." I said.

Eisuke was oddly silent after I had spoke but Baba's carefree laugh eased the tension.

"Well, all's well that ends well." He said. "It was a real pain not being able to stay here."

"So where did you guys go, then?" I asked.

"I stayed in a cheap motel. The customer service here sucks compared to back home." Kishi said.

"I told you to come stay with me." Ota said.

"There's no way I was gonna waste all that money on the fancy-ass hotel you were stayin' in."

"What about Soryu and Baba?"

"I stayed in the Ice Dragon's London Headquarters. It was perfectly fine." Soryu said.

"I… well, why does it really matter, anyway?" Baba said evasively.

Ota then started cracking up. "Baba went from one woman's place to the next."

"What? Really?"

"And every time he tried to stay they just ended up kicking him out. Finally, he gave up and just came to stay with me." Ota said.

"Thanks for letting me stay." Baba said.

"I still can't believe you were willing to put yourself up for auction. That was awfully risky behaviour from you, Eisuke." Soryu said.

"Everyone likes a good thrill now and then, right?" Eisuke said with a chuckle.

I wondered how much of this he actually planned? Did it all start from him proposing to me or did he plan this from the minute we met Frank? I wouldn't put it past him.

Its been a few days since Eisuke had proposed to me, and things were finally getting back to normal. Though I did question what was normal as things never seemed normal anymore.

I was enjoying my break in the staff break room, when my phone started ringing.

"Hello?"

"We've just received a deposit of a very large sum into your account and we need to verify." It was my bank.

"A large deposit?"

"Yes. Of $80 million."

I was drinking a cup of tea and spat it out and started chocking "Excuse me?!" I knew only one person who could be responsible for this. I hung up and rushed up to the penthouse, Eisuke was the only one in the lounge.

"What's all the commotion?" he said.

"Don't give me that. Someone deposited $80 million into my bank account." I said annoyed.

"Was that not enough?"

"What? That's not what I mean. Why did you give me so much money?" I demanded.

"I discussed it with my lawyer and decided to give you a part of my assets." He said.

I thought back and remember when Eisuke had me bring tea when he was having a meeting with someone. I thought it was about the hotel.

"But why?" I asked.

"In case anything were to happen to me." He said sounding very serious. "I've been targeted too often lately and as things are right now, it would take a long time for you to get my assets."

"But… you don't have to do that right now."

"And whose fault was it that it took so long? If you would've accepted my marriage proposal from the very beginning the paperwork would've gone much more smoothly."

I stood there speechless, not sure how to answer him. "So that's why you wanted to marry me?"

"If you would've signed the papers that day, all of the paperwork would be over and done with by now. But you wouldn't answer me so I had to go a different route."

"And this was it?"

"Since we're not married, I couldn't give you all of my assets. Adding to the sheer amount of paperwork involved, I had little options. If the media found out I gave all my assets to someone who wasn't my wife, they'd have a field day with it. But if it's just a portion of my assets, things go a lot smoother. That made a whole lot more work for me, though."

"So that's why you were so insistent on me signing the paperwork." I said but Eisuke didn't elaborate further. I wasn't sure if I should be angry or happy, he wanted to marry me to keep me safe but not because he wanted us be together? No that's not it. He loves me, I have no doubt about that.

I reached out and gave him a hug, I felt his arms encircle my waist. "I just wish you would've told me."

"There was no need."

"Seriously? Do you have any idea what you've put me through." I said and poked him hard in the chest. I then tried to pull away but he tightened his grip on me.

"You're going to be my wife, do with the money as you please." He said.

"There's no way I can accept that much money, Eisuke. I don't need money from you." I said.

"I thought you'd say that." he said sounding disappointed.

"I'm going to be your wife, right? So then there's no reason for me to have that much money." As soon as I said the word wife, I felt my cheeks flush as I started to blush.

"It's a gift. Take it."

"I can't, it's your money." I said and stood my ground till Eisuke relented. "Plus, I already have what I want." I said.

"And what's that?" he said.

"You. We're engaged now right?" I said.

He started to unbutton my blouse.

"What if someone comes?" I said and tried to escape his grasp.

"Then I'll make sure they hear you moan. Looks like I've got work to do to make that happen." He said and held me tight. He then sat down and pulled me onto his lap.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

A few weeks later, I was getting ready work in the locker room like I always did. I felt the ring on my finger, I took it off and placed it on a chain around my neck. I thought back to what happened not long after Eisuke had given me my ring. We were sat in our living room.

"Take the ring off?" he questioned.

"Yes, I can't work with this expensive ring on my finger. I'd be afraid of damaging it or loosing it plus, I can't really give massages with a ring on."

"You may not take it off." He said firmly. "That ring finger belongs to me now. There's no reason for you to not wear the ring."

I sighed and rolled my eyes, I knew he would react that way. "Eisuke, it's normal practice to not wear jewellery at work. Most people take their rings off."

"I'm not most people."

"Eisuke, I'm doing it whether you like it or not." I said.

"Fine, but only during work hours. You put it on the instant your shifts ends. That's an order."

"That's an order?" I questioned. "You can't order me around."

I didn't want to start an argument, so I came up with a compromise. Whilst at work, I would keep the ring on a chain around my neck. I tucked the necklace into my blouse and left the locker room with a wry smile.

I headed up to the penthouse to see if any of the guys wanted any treatments, but they were engaged in heated discussion.

"Good morning. I was wondering if anyone wanted any treatments today?"

"Freya, we've been waiting for you." Baba said.

"Me? Why?"

"Hurry up and show us the ring." Ota said.

"She's not even wearing it." Soryu said.

"Can't wear it on the clock." Kishi said.

I couldn't smell Eisuke's perfume, was he in the room? "Is Eisuke here?"

"He said he'd be late tonight. So, now's your chance to give us all the details." Baba said. He sounded like a teenage girl.

"Um well, I can't really wear my ring at work so, I have it on a chain instead." I said and held the necklace up away from my neck.

"I can't believe you got Eisuke to agree to that." Soryu said.

"Well, he didn't really have much of a choice." I said. I took the necklace off and showed it to the guys.

"Pfft, it's just like Boss to demand you have it on you 24-7." Baba said.

"I wouldn't be surprised if this ring costs $5 million." Ota said.

"What? $5 million, are you serious?" I gasped.

"Probably more." Baba said.

"Hmm… yeah, I guess judging by the size of the stones. It could've been more." Ota said.

I couldn't believe that it cost that much.

"You didn't know?" Kishi said.

"No, Eisuke didn't say anything about how much is cost." I said.

"He spent a whole lotta dough to make sure other women steer clear of him."

"What did you just say?"

"True. Any woman seeing this rock on her finger, would immediately give up on Boss." Baba said.

"Yep. Anyone could tell it's super expensive." Ota said.

Would Eisuke really use a ring to keep women away from him? He did tell me not to take it off during work, I wondered if that was the reason? I started to feel anxious when Eisuke walked into the room.

"What's with the expression on your face?" he asked.

"Huh?"

"It's first thing in the morning. What could you possibly be gloomy about?"

"Nothing." I said and put the necklace back on and went back to work.

"Man, Boss. I'm sure glad you didn't get sold. The hotel's yours again, and poor little rich boy Frankie got sent to the slammer." Baba said.

"But what will we do about the auctions now? Since the police know about them, surely we can't continue them." Soryu said.

"Mamoru took care of that quite nicely." Eisuke said.

"It was a huge pain to fix their investigation. Feel like I've worked for a hundred years." Kishi said.

"Glad to hear it. But the auctions will be on hold for a while till things calm down, right?" Baba said.

"Was this all part of your plan, Eisuke?" Ota asked.

"Of course it was." Eisuke said sounding confident.

"You sure got a lotta confidence." Kishi said.

"Oh? So even the Tres Spades falling down to #9 in the hotel rankings was part of your plan?" Ota said sarcastically.

"What are you going to do about the ranking?" I asked.

"We made it back up to #4 these past few weeks." Ota said.

"But Franks hotel has really been hurting since his arrest." Baba said.

"Yep. Fell off the rankings entirely." Kishi said.

"I feel kind of bad. That was his father's hotel after all." I said.

"It's the natural outcome. Must be a task to clean up the messes of his failure of a son." Eisuke said sullenly.

"I bet it really gets under your skin that your hotel still isn't #1 even though Frank's hotel is ruined, huh?" Ota said, almost goading Eisuke on.

"It has nothing to do with Frank's hotel. I never thought of him as my rival." Eisuke said.

"So you have confidence that the Tres Spades will end up number one eventually?" Baba said.

"Of course I do. And I'll do whatever it takes to get on top." Eisuke said indifferently but I could tell by his tone of voice that he was angry and wanting to fight.

"I'll do whatever I can to help." I said and then I felt all of the guys staring at me.

"Freya, you're awfully gung-ho about this." Baba said.

"'Course she is. This is her future husband, y'know." Kishi said.

I pondered the work husband, it felt strange thinking of Eisuke as my husband.

That weekend, Eisuke took me to a famous hotel in London.

"What are we doing here?" I asked.

"This is the hotel currently ranked number one. It had been stuck in the number two position until Frank's hotel fell off the rankings." Eisuke said.

"So, it finally became number one now that it's rival is gone." I said.

"Their standards must be low if he was their greatest rival. I was looking back over the ranking history, and it seems the top ten hotels didn't change much." He said.

"I'm sure they were surprised when the Tres Spades suddenly debuted at number four, huh?" I said.

Eisuke didn't answer.

"Are we here to check out our competition?" I said.

"Yes."

"Got it. I'll look at things from staff member prospective." I said.

We checked in and a staff member escorted us to our room. I was about to follow after Eisuke, when suddenly I almost ran into someone in the hallway. My cane bounced off them and I didn't move quick enough to avoid them.

"Pardon me." They said.

I recognised that voice "Hikaru?"

"Get out of the way." He said coldly and pushed past me to get into the elevator. I stood there bewildered, that was Hikaru. I was certain of it, but he was quite mean, he told me to get out of the way. Maybe he didn't recognise me?

"Hurry up." Eisuke said, he had stopped for me and was waiting for me to catch up.

"Sorry."

"Stop fidgeting." He said and took hold of my arm.

"Eisuke, I just saw Hikaru."

"Hikaru?"

"Yes, Hikaru Aihara. I worked with him at the hotel in Dubai. But then he just disappeared one day, I thought he'd quit but…"

"You're wasting a lot of energy thinking about a man other then me." He said and released my arm.

"No, it's not like that…" I said but he then marched off leaving me behind.

That night, we had dinner in the hotel dinning room.

"What's the view like?" I asked.

"You can see the Tres Spades from here and the church you escaped in to." He said.

"Ugh, I don't even want to think about that." I said. Then suddenly, the lighting in the bar changed and a bright light show began, utilizing the whole space. The bright lights hurt my eyes, I shielded them with my hands and ended up slipping on my glasses. But with the sun glasses on in a dark bar, meant I couldn't make any shapes out at all. Everything was just dark and black.

"That's bright." I said.

"Every hotel does something like this." He said.

"I bet it looks like nice though." I said.

The restaurant was quite nice, the staff were friendly and the food was good. Thinking about it, this was our first date since we came to London. I felt the ring on my finger and smiled fondly, soon we were going to be husband and wife.

Oops, I should be concentrating. We're meant to be checking out the hotel. Even though there was a light show, the room was quiet. "The guests are reacting much."

"Like I said, most hotels have these kind of light shows. They've seen this before at any number of hotels and restaurants." He said. "You're the only one making a fuss about it."

"Well, when you say it like that. Oh, the other day Soryu told me that when you guys were in boarding school, you were really bad at sewing." I said. "But you wanted to be number one so badly, that you even practiced sewing in your dorm room."

Eisuke was speechless for a moment "Soryu should've bitten his tongue."

"So did you become better at sewing?"

"Who do you think I am? I can sew better than you."

"I think anyone can sew better than me." I said. I tried to imagine Eisuke sewing and burst out laughing.

After the meal, we went back to our suite and we started to get undressed.

"What's the room like?" I asked.

"It's fine. The view is better from the Tres Spades, hence why I built it the way I did." He said.

I had concentrated so much today but thinking about it, this hotel didn't seem that much different to ours. Nothing really stood out. "Why is this hotel number one though? There must be something else. Maybe they have special accommodation for regular guests?"

"How long are you going to just sit there?"

"Huh?"

Before I could turn around, he grabbed my arm and pushed me down onto the bed.

"If you're so interested in this room, why don't we try out the bed?"

I smiled "That's a good idea." I said and put my arms round his neck.

"I doubt we'd have time to sleep though." He said, almost as a warning. He pinned both of my hands above my head and started to kiss my neck.

The next morning, I couldn't stop yawning while we left the hotel. I got barely any sleep last night, it was all Eisuke's fault.

"You look tired." He said with a chuckle.

"Yes because of someone."

"At least we got to see how comfortable the bed was." He said but then his tone changed "Take off your ring."

"What? Why?"

"Now." He said urgently, stopping in his tracks. But why now, he was so adamant before.

I hesitantly took off my ring and held in my hand, when an unfamiliar woman approached us.

"Hi, Eisuke." She said.

"Fancy seeing you here." Eisuke in his fake voice that he used to charm guests.

"I know, it must be fate meeting you here like this." She said. I watched them carefully and saw long blurry object touch his shoulder, I guessed it was her arm.

Why was she touching him?! And more to the point, Eisuke didn't do anything to stop her. If I didn't know better, he seemed to be enjoying it.

"Are you working today?" she asked.

"Yes, but I just finished." He said.

"Then join me for lunch, will you?" she said.

"Of course." He said and moved close to her. "Freya, go home."

"What?!"

"Come on Eisuke, hurry up." The woman said.

"Sorry, let's go." They both disappeared leaving me behind.

I was so confused, I just stood there speechless. What was that all about? Did he not want her to know we were engaged? But why and why was she touching him?

I pulled out my phone and rang Becca, unfortunately she was working to I rang Sophie and Lucy and organised a get together. I spent the rest of the afternoon wondering around town, before we met all met at Becca's.

"Ok, so what happened?" Becca asked and gave us a glass of wine.

"You guys fight a lot, don't you?" Sophie said.

"He seems to upset you a lot. Is he really worth it? Plus now you're engaged, you can still say no." Lucy said.

"There must be a reason. He'd never cheat on me, but I've never seen him act that way before. I love him more then anything. I want to be with him but…"

"If you have doubts, just give the ring back." Lucy said.

"No, I don't want to give the ring back." I said.

Becca then grabbed my wrist and held my hand up to her face, so she could see the ring. "It's a lovely ring. Freya, you need to confront him. Demand answers. If he doesn't give you a good enough answer, then just end it with him."

I nodded "Yes you're right." I said and downed my glass, I got ready to stand but Becca stopped me.

"Where are you going?" she asked.

"Uh… home?"

"Nope. We have yet to celebrate your engagement and we still haven't had a night out, so I say we do so now." She said.

"Yes, I agree. I haven't gotten drunk in ages." Lucy said.

"Same here. Let's go." Sophie said.

Becca then jumped to her feet "Plus, I have new dresses that we can all wear." She ran out of the room and returned with a handful of dresses.

I felt like I needed a good night out, I hadn't had one in ages. I agreed to go out with them. Becca helped me get dressed into a tight dress that caressed my curves, she did my hair and make up and we all went into town and went to Becca's favourite cocktail bar.

"Drink! Drink! Drink!" we all chanted as we each down shot after shot. After the 10th shot, things became fuzzy. I woke up face down on the sofa in the living room. I sat up and pressed a button on my watch, it was 9am. The sun light that came through the big windows hurt my eyes.

"Oh." I groaned and my head fell into my hands. I remember dancing and loads of drinking. How did I even get back here?

"You're finally awake." Eisuke said and he came into the room.

"Ugh… morning." I said and led back down but Eisuke wasn't happy. He stormed over to him and pulled me up so I was sat upright.

"Where were you last night? And why didn't you answer your phone? I thought I told you to always answer within three rings."

I pushed him away and stood up, I wobbled for a moment but regained my balance. "You can't tell me what to do, not what happened after yesterday."

"If you have something to say, then say it."

I clenched my fists in anger and turned to face him "Fine. Who was that woman and why did you not want her to know I was your fiancé? Is she your English girlfriend? Your bit on the side?"

"So what if she is?"

I stamped my foot "We are engaged. You're mine, I won't have some bitch beat me."

Eisuke sighed deeply "You're not very perceptive, are you? There are millions of women like her in the world. I'd never be serious about someone like her."

"Then who is she?"

"Her name is Jessica, and she's a hotel critic. She's one of the people in charge of the hotel ranking system. I just took her out to talk business, that's it." He said.

"Then why did you ask me to take off my ring?"

"It would have been problematic for her to find out I'm engaged, for many reasons." He said.

I felt a sudden relief from his explanation. I then felt bad that I got angry and decided to go out and get drunk with my friends.

"You were so jealous of her you went and got drunk? You naughty little thing, ignoring my calls like that." he said with a smirk and he started to close in on me.

"So, what did you two do together, exactly?"

"You really want to know?" he said.

"Yes. I'm going to be your wife, so I want to know everything about you."

"Then why don't we start with you knowing my body?" he said and then grabbed my wrists, but as soon as he saw my left finger, he stopped. "Where's your ring?"

"You told me to take it off, so I did." I said. I then searched for my bag, he picked it up and I got out my purse and inside was my ring.

"I only meant in front of Jessica. Put it back on." He ordered and forced the ring back onto my finger. He then whispered in my ear "I hope you're ready to get punished for doubting me."

"I-"

He pushed me down onto the sofa and ripped open my dress. Before long, our naked skin was pressed against each other.


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

A few days later, I headed up to the penthouse. I had just finished an early shift and was going to my room to have a shower. As I entered the penthouse lounge, everyone was engaged in a serious discussion.

"We won't go against it, but…" Baba said.

"I didn't even know that was possible." Ota said.

"I'm tellin' ya, ain't nothin' fair in this work." Kishi said.

What were they talking about?

"Are you sure you're alright with this, Eisuke?" Soryu asked.

"It's a small price to pay for our ranking to go up." Eisuke said.

"What?"

"What is it?" Eisuke asked when he heard my surprise.

"Nothing. What are you guys talking about? The hotel rankings?"

"Yes, I bribed the woman and paid for a good ranking."

"What? Really?"

"He paid the hotel critic off to raise the Tres Spades rank." Soryu said.

"That was quick. Guess it's better than waitin' for it to go up the normal way." Kishi said.

"She's not gonna tell anyone else, right?" Ota asked.

"What in the world did you do to make her agree to it?" Baba asked.

"I'll leave that to your imagination." Eisuke said.

So that's why Eisuke took Jessica out yesterday. "But is it kind of cheating? You haven't really earned the top spot."

"I don't care. What's important is that we raise our ranking." Eisuke said.

No one seemed to disagree with Eisuke's methods, in fact they all seemed rather please. But I just couldn't agree to Eisuke's methods.

A few days later, Eisuke was getting ready to head to work early.

"You're up early." I said.

"I have a business meeting with Jessica. I want to get my work done before then." He said.

"You're meeting with Jessica again?" I couldn't hide the obvious jealousy in my voice, I couldn't help it. I knew he wouldn't do anything but I still didn't like them meeting up. Plus, paying to get the top spot, didn't that make the whole thing meaningless? "I know this is none of my business, but are you really sure you want to do this? I feel like you're deceiving your guests doing this."

"They'll enjoy coming to the number one hotel in London. Do you really think my hotel deserves to be number four?"

"Of course not." Tres Spades deserved to be number one but not like this.

"I don't have time to sit around and chat. You should get to work, too." He said and then left the room.

I went to work feeling anxious, but I tried my best to stay positive. As I made my way to the spa, there was an elderly couple getting out of an elevator.

"Good morning Freya." The old man said. I had given him and his wife gentle massages the other day, after they had gotten stiff from walking around London.

"Good morning. Where are you two off today?" I asked. They always made a point to say hi and chat to me whenever we crossed paths.

"Today we're going to try to explore places that aren't in the guidebook." The old woman said. "Thanks to that map you drew us, I don't think we'll get lost."

"It's not a tourist spot, so it's a bit difficult to get to. But I'm sure you'll make it if you follow my directions." I said.

"Thanks. You've been so kind to us, Freya." The man said. "Everyone's talking about the hotel rankings, but they aren't really important to us. Because in our hearts, this hotel will always be number one."

I smiled "Thank you so much for saying that." It always made me smile when I made guests happy.

"Freya, would you like to join us for lunch?" the old woman asked.

I was due a break "Yes, I'd be glad to." I said and we all went to the VIP lounge. I sat with them at a table not too far from a window and we all enjoyed cups of tea and sandwiches. We all exchanged pleasantries when I heard two familiar voices not far away from us. It was Eisuke and Jessica.

I heard Jessica laugh and she was flirting with Eisuke. My hands balled into fists and I tried my best to ignore them.

"Are you ok Freya?" The old man asked.

"I'm fine – actually I'm not fine. You mind excusing me for a moment?" I said and stood up. I followed the two voices, I could make out the shape of the table as I approached it. "Excuse me, Jessica isn't it?" I said interrupting their conversation.

"What are you doing here?" Eisuke asked, sounding annoyed.

"I'm sorry." I said to him and then turned to Jessica "I don't like you. I think what you're doing is wrong and I want you to stay away from Eisuke."

She laughed "And who are you to order me around? You're just a nobody. How can you hire such rude, incompetent staff Eisuke?"

Eisuke didn't respond but he didn't jump in to defend me either, but that was ok. I didn't need him to defend me.

"I'm not incompetent. I care about the guests of this hotel and what you are doing, is wrong." I said.

"Ha. You're so naïve. Don't you know that money makes the world go 'round? I want you to join together with me, Eisuke. And I'm sure we'll be able to build at least two more Tres Spades here in London."

Eisuke's tone then changed dramatically "Don't touch me with your filthy hands." He said coldly.

"What?" Jessica gasped.

"And how dare you speak that way to my fiancée."

"Your fiancée? Her?!"

A smug smile spread across my face "Yeah, I'm his fiancée. Deal with it."

"I was going to keep this ruse up a little longer, but I'm done with you." He said and tossed an envelope at Jessica.

"What's this?"

"Proof of all your illegal business deals. You're letting other hotels pay you off, too. Was it fun, controlling the rankings and getting paid handsomely to do so?"

"Wait, so this was all planned?" I said.

"It was just to get the proof I needed to turn her in."

Jessica sat their speechless "But… how did you know? I swore everyone else to secrecy."

"It wasn't that hard to figure out. The number on hotel clearly wasn't up to standards. I could tell that the moment I stepped foot in the door. I thought there must be money changing hands behind the scenes. And you've tried to deceive me and get money out of me before." He said.

"How dare you. You're the one who agreed to the deal."

"You fool. I'm not interested in things that can be bought. Anyone with money can get those things."

Jessica gave up, I heard the table and the chair move as she sank to the floor. "Are you going to turn me into the police?"

"I could be persuaded to keep quiet. But only if there is a whole new panel of judges and the rankings are completely re-done. And I want the very toughest critics to come and judge my hotel."

"Why?" I asked.

"If I'm going to be the number one hotel, I won't have it any other way." He said confidently. "I'll make sure my hotel is the best hotel in all of Europe."

"Fine." Jessica agreed. "I've heard rumours about you, but you really are ruthless." She spat hatefully as she left the room.

Good, that bitch is gone. I felt the tension leave my shoulders as I sighed.

"So, that was your plan all along?" I asked.

"It would be meaningless to buy the top spot. You said so yourself. The new judging will happen in a few days. I want you to be the one who shows them around." He said.

"Me?"

"Just treat them like you would any guest."

"But I'm sure there are other, better people that could show them around-"

"I don't remember giving you a choice." He said before he left the room.

I suppose at least it means that he trusts my work and is proud of it, but still. There were better people could tend to guests. Why me?

A few days later, the judges show up. There were really strict, why did I have to be in charge? I was stood by the main entrance waiting for them to arrive.

"Freya." Someone said and tapped me on the shoulder. I recognised his voice, it was the old man from that nice elderly couple from the other day.

"Hi. Where's your wife today?" I asked as I turned around. I could only see one blurry figure in front of me.

"She's going sightseeing alone. I have to work today."

"You do? That's a shame, well I hope your wife has a good time. What do you do for work?" I asked.

He didn't say anything, but I had the feeling he was smiling at me. He walked off but then joined the other judges who were making their way into the lobby.

My mouth dropped. He was a hotel critic?! I quickly regained my composure. I gripped my cane and showed the judges around with a big smile.

"I'll carry your things if you like." I offered to one of the judges when someone pushed me out of the way.

"Excuse me, are these all bags?"

"Baba?" I questioned. He joined me and took all of the judge's bags.

"Leave this to me. Good luck." He said and pushed me forwards.

"Since when do you work here?" I whispered.

"Since today. Now go." He whispered back.

I took the judges into the lobby and left Baba with the bags. I welcomed everyone and started telling them about the hotel when Ota walked up to me.

"Hello there. I see you have your usual cheerful smile on your face, Miss Stone." He said in a cheerful manner.

I was a little stunned "Uh… thank you." I said. I guess Ota was helping to, it was nice that the guys were getting involved.

"Who's this?" the old man asked.

"He's a VIP guest who is staying in one of our penthouse suites." I explained.

"I was a guest at the Tres Spades in Tokyo as well. This hotel really is the best. Just as wonderful as that one. Oh, that's right. I'm actually having an exhibition here, I'd love to see you there." Ota said, he handed them all business cards and left. I imagined that he left almost skipping away.

"Wow, that was the world-famous artist, Ota Kisaki." One of the judges said.

"Seems he's quite fond of this hotel." The old man said.

Just then, we heard a commotion outside the hotel. I made my way to the entrance, pushing past the judges.

"What's going on? Should I call security?" I said.

"No need, I think these men have it handled." The old man said.

Soryu and Kishi were holding down a man.

"Stay still." Soryu ordered.

"Lemme go. I know there's money in here." The man shouted.

"You really think we'd let you in to rob the place?" Soryu said.

"Don't ever show your face here again." Kishi ordered and dragged the man away.

I was so tempted to roll my eyes but I managed to resist and I returned to the lobby with the judges. I know Eisuke wanted to impress them but wasn't that a bit much? But also quite impressive. I wondered if they hired a guy to pretend to rob the place or if it was just Ota or Baba acting?

"That's right. There was an attempted burglary here before." One of the judges said.

"Well, as you can see, we've strengthened our security since then. We have undercover detectives working here, also."

The judges all seemed impressed and spoke amongst themselves saying how impressed they were. The rest of the day proceeded very smoothly. I showed them all around the hotel, I took particular pride in the spa and spent the longest time there. Showing them the treatment areas etc. We finished the tour with dinner at one of the best restaurants in the hotel, where I even played a little violin for them.

A few days later, Ota showed us a travel magazine.

"The new hotel rankings are out." He said.

"Ooh, let's see." Baba said.

We were all sat in the penthouse lounge, relaxing on the sofas. I tried my hardest, hopefully it improved our ranking.

"We're number #1." Baba said proudly.

"Yes." I cheered and punched the air.

"We did it." Baba said.

"We sure worked for it." Kishi said.

"All the other hotels on the ranking list are new, too." Ota said.

"That woman was crooked after all." Soryu said.

"Nothing good ever comes out of mixing business with private affairs." Eisuke said.

"You're something, Boss. I totally would've gotten tricked by her." Baba said.

Everyone then started laughing. I was just glad that the judges were impressed by the Japanese style of service we provided here. "This Japanese flavour breathes a fresh life into London." The article read.

"Eisuke, we did it." I beamed.

"We just got the ranking we deserved." He said as if it was nothing.

"But it's amazing. All the judges were saying such nice things about us." I said. "There's no security concerns anymore and they said every guest is treated like a VIP. See? The proves that you've been doing everything right."

Eisuke was silent and it felt like he was starring at me. And then, he stood up, walked over to me and picked me in his arms.

"Hey. What are you doing?"

"You get excited too easily. I think you need some private instruction." He said and slung me over his shoulder.

"What? No I don't. Put me down, right now."

"You're embarrassing me, Boss." Baba said.

"Pfft. Freya is happy enough for the both of them." Ota laughed.

"He probably doesn't want her making a fuss about it." Soryu said.

"She makes a fuss about everything." Kishi said.

"Hey, I heard that." I said as everyone started to laugh at us and none of them tried to save me.

That night, Eisuke gave me a very lengthy and intense 'private instruction' and it seemed like he just couldn't get enough of me.

"You're so mean Eisuke." I said.

"Oh? Then why were you begging me not to stop?"

I propped myself up on one elbow "Ok for starters, I wasn't begging." I said and then collapsed back into the bed. I felt exhausted yet Eisuke seemed fine. "You really are amazing Eisuke. We really did become number one."

"Can't you give it up?"

"I'm just so happy. Especially since they recognised how much we care for our guests. It's just really nice."

"I'm only interested in being number one. And now that I am, I intend to stay there."

I turned towards him and smiled, planting a kiss on his lips "I wouldn't expect anything else from you."

I sat up and went to stand to go to the loo, when I knocked a bag off the end table. I went to pick up and found a single piece of paper on the floor.

"What's that?" Eisuke asked.

"Dunno, it was in the wedding favour I got from Chisato's reception. What does it say?"

Eisuke took if from me "It says, Eisuke – 80% and Frank – 47%." He read.

"What does that mean?"

"I'll hang on to it." He said and didn't give it back.

"Ok." I said and continued to the bathroom.


End file.
